


King Under The Moantain

by LarrysBandana



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Bagginshield Week, Battle of Five Armies, Dirty Thoughts, Falling In Love, First Kiss, First Time, Fix-It, Fluff and Humor, Gay, Jokes, Light Angst, M/M, Original Character(s), Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, POV Bilbo Baggins, POV First Person, Plot, Romance, Sassy Bilbo Baggins, Self Confidence, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Smut, Strangers to Lovers, True Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-03-31 07:45:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 51,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13970514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LarrysBandana/pseuds/LarrysBandana
Summary: Bilbo Baggins is a cunning little hobbit. He loves to embarrass his fellow men at their expense, haze, tease and kidding.He does not mince matters.At a late evening, when he just wants to take his freshly prepared food out of the hot pan, there is an unexpected visit to his doormat and Bilbo feels a new feeling in the course of the evening.A kind of... self-consciousness.▪Slow Burn"Everything is going to be fine in the end. If it's not fine it's not the end."▪This story contains Bilbo's whole journey from beginning to end with minor canon divergences such as choice of words, actions and feelings between certain characters based on Jackson's movies.▪All rights are reserved by creator J. R. R. Tolkien & Peter JacksonGerman version via Wattpad





	1. Troublemaker

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, the "A" in the title is wanted. Hehe.
> 
> First of all a warm welcome and thank you for agreeing to read this story (maybe even through- what I really hope for you).  
> English isn't my mother tongue and I have to admit that I used some translators to translate it.  
> If you're capable of German language, you're welcomed to read it on Wattpad, it's the same name.  
> I would like to say that I will describe many things or much, depending on how everything will fit in the course of the story, differently or not quite as detailed as Tolkien. I'd have "The Hobbit" laying next to me all the time and I'm just too lazy to do that. I will possibly change certain actions, reactions, etc. to get the best out of it.  
> Nevertheless, I will go into the events in the films and add some extended scenes, but the focus is on the relationship between two certain people (who I love above everything and will always be my OTP). God this shit is long, I hope you haven't fallen asleep yet...  
> Y'all should look forward to the next chapter, I will probably keep my mouth shut for now.  
> A little reminder: My style of writing could change between the chapters, since I've been working on this story for some time now!

I smoked deep on my pipe.

The piping herb misted my senses and made me chuckle as I blew a big smoke ring. In any case, it was big and you'd have to admit I'm the most talented pipe smoker in the whole shire. _And a little pipe smoking makes me forget the busy day_ , I thought grinning. A bird chirped, then several, and I sat snugly on the little bench in front of my wonderful Hobbit hole and enjoyed the spiritual tranquility of nature. But I don't think it should last long.  
My face was relaxed towards the sky and the sun fell warm on my cheeks as a shadow overlayed  
Slightly annoyed I opened my eyes, a shnippy set lying on my lips. _Neighbors? Related? Friends? Known? Or even strangers? No thanks!_ No one should disturb my peace, and that is what every hobbit who knows me knows, and that's pretty much everyone. Of course it's not up to me, but I seem to beremembered by my neighbors from a cause I can't fathom. In my field of view stood a great old man, wrapped in a long grey robe and holding a wooden stick in his hand, he was probably leaning on it, judging by his shifted body weight. His head was obscured by a mighty pointed hat and a long white beard sprout from his head up to his hips. I was too surprised to start my alleged attack and took puzzled the pipe out of my mouth.  
The man did not move from place and smiled at me obliquely. I stared briefly uninvolved back, hoping he interpreted my claim correctly and vanished. But he did not, and his smile became wider. _Oh, great, a strange old man smiling at me. What's more beautiful in life? A pack of pipe cabbage maybe._ I got impatient.

"Good morning," I said lightly urging, yet still striving friendly. I just wanted to finish my pipe and then go back to my hobbit hole. _Should I pretend a sunburn?_ , I thought briefly, but banished this idea immediately. The man before me opened the wide-smiling mouth and said:

"What do you mean? Do you wish me a good morning, or do you think that it is a beautiful morning, no matter what we wish, or that this morning is all well and good to be found, or that you must be good or beautiful this morning?" I hadn't expected such an answer and responded perplexed:

"Um.. All at once, I suppose"  
I quickly caught myself and stared extensively at the wooden stick of the man, whom I could not yet fully classify before I looked into his face.

"Do we know each other? Or what is driving you on such a beautiful day directly to my humble hobbit hole, where I always like to cherish unannounced visit?" I hoped the news came out clearly. He made no effort to go and I gradually lost patience as he talked again:

"I know you, Bilbo Baggins, son of the wonderful Belladonna tuk. Likewise, you are taught by my name, even if you do not know the face of it. I'm Gandalf."  
Astonished, I took the pipe out of my mouth and stared at him. Now that he mentioned it, I actually seemed to remember him. Gandalf the fireworks hero. _Did he always look so old?_ , shot me through my head.

"Gandalf... but not the Gandalf, who has always conjured these impressive fireworks out of his hat? What gives me the honor?" I said exaggeratedly cheerful even if a little bit of it was meant to be serious. I had to admit, I loved his fireworks and tried to rein in my unkindness from a little while ago, because I was curious about what he would want from me.

"Always trying to stay polite, even though you just have something completely different in mind, don't you?" I replied nothing and simply brought the pipe back to my mouth, which was probably enough for him to answer. _What does he think of disturbing me that day? As if my curious neighbours and relatives who sometimes roam around my cave were not enough..._  
He acknowledged it with a knowing smile.

"I'm looking for someone who would be willing to share in an adventure." I sipped heavily on my pipe, the herb did not affect me any more. The presence of Gandalf seemed to pull the entire buzz out of my head and left me lonely. Nevertheless, I answered steadfastly:

"An adventurer you will not find here in all Hobbiton, let alone before my garden gate. Ask for some time in Bree, if the way up to there should not be strenuous." Disparaging, yet with a mischievous smile on my lips, I looked at Gandalf from top to bottom.

"Bilbo Baggins, always with a dishonorable remark on his lips. It wasn't always like that, right? I can still remember exactly when you were always looking for adventures in your younger years; also friendly; You always wanted to leave the shire and move to the east." Shaking my head, I took one last puff of the pipe and lifted myself from the bench without the magician of another look, for I was sure that someone who dressed like this could not be anything else.

"No snippy remark from you, Bilbo? You disappoint me." Briefly I stopped. _What does the old man ask of me? That I am going to pack my seven things with joy and simply follow him into unexplored forests and swamps, only to be robbed and stabbed in the end? Ridiculous!_ I turned around and couldn't hold back the angry face.

"You have nothing better to do than bother me on my property on this beautiful afternoon? Or will you get me right with this thing there hit", I pointed at the wooden rod,

"fainting and grinding on this wonderful adventure? I have to disappoint you, dear Gandalf, I now much prefer a few freshly baked pear biscuits!" I had no time to turn around and walk away, for Gandalf answered thunderingly:

"Bilbo Baggins, watch your tongue and stop these formalities! I wanted to take more pleasant measures, but if you continue to be so stubborn and obstinate, I will probably have to consult your suggestion!"  
I stood there unmoved and sipped carelessly on my pipe while looking in his blue eyes.

"Good morning," I said and ended the conversation in no leading final. Bouncy I turned around on the spot, walked up the head to my front door and put my fingers around the cool knob. Without looking back again, I opened the door and slipped into my cuddly cave, among other things also lovingly called Bag End. Instead of actually grabbing the wonderfully smelling pear biscuits on my left, I leaned against the door and breathed deeply. This magician should not rob me of all willpower. I drove myself exhausted through the curly chestnut-brown hair, while "curly" is in Hobbiton no longer considered as a feature, because everyone here wore a curly splendor on his head. Suddenly, I heard a scratch at my door and could not classify this noise. _What is the magician doing?_ Quietly I crept to my window and could briefly see my front door when suddenly a face appeared right in front of my eyes.  
Frightened I drove back and grabbed my heart.

"Don't scare me like that!", I screamed against the window-pane and gazed at Gandalf with clenched eyes as he walked through the garden gate.

"Insane old jerk," I murmured shaking my head and turning now to the important things.


	2. Mischief-makers

While snipping my tongue I set up my dinner, consisting of a freshly caught trout this morning, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots on my plate. I sat down snugly, put the napkin under my collar and distributed lemon juice over my food as it rang at the door. Slightly annoyed, I rolled my eyes. _Of course I could not be undisturbed for a day or two, no, especially not at this time when every reasonable hobbit should be in bed and only I again do not make this mistake._ Sighing, I stood up, throwing a yearning glance at the food and shuffleding to the door. I did not care that I was in my thin night clothes and with an open robe dressed while heading to the door. I opened it bored and, to my amazement, had a dwarf standing before me. A male, mind you. He had a long brown beard, his head was half bald and on his back he wore two axes. When he caught my gaze, he said:

"Dwalin, at your service." and fell into a slight bow. As he walked into the parlour on his own, I answered:

"Bilbo Baggins, err... at yours. " I quickly added, "do we know each other?"  
The dwarf eyeinged me from top to bottom until he lingered at my feet and stared at her with an indefinable gaze.

"No," he said, pulling the hood from his shoulders and pressing it into my hand, along with the axes.

"Where is it?", he asked, and let his gaze wander about my institution. I could see the tattoos on the back of his head, but I didn't know what they meant. I decided to stay polite for the time being and still assessing the situation.

"Excuse me, but where exactly is _what_ supposed to be?" Dwalin the dwarf now turned back to me and replied:

"Dinner. There should be plenty of it." And tramped on his own with his polluted boots simply in the direction of my food. First, I had to digest this visit and just put the coat and the axes somewhere on the ground. When I stumbled back into the dining room, Dwalin had already made himself comfortable and just misappropiate my dinner. Upset, but feared he could immediately break all my bones if I opened my mouth, I sat in silence near him and watched him eat. _What does this dwarf actually venture? Trudges without a statement in my house, into which he was not even asked; is hypocritical to my dining table and devours my evening meal. Does Gandalf have the fingers in the game?_ After the plate had been emptied almost completely, he asked chewing and with his mouth full:

"Is there more?" I nodded quickly, just not to bring him on the palm, and grabbed the bowl with the deliciously fragrant pear biscuits. Quickly, when Dwalin was just busy biting the trout's head, I snitched one of my own biscuits and stuffed it in my coat pocket.

"Here, if it's agreeable," I said as sincerely as possible, but always with an ulterior motive. He just nodded and stuffed himself three at the same time into his mouth. _That's what I call table manners. And I thought I was the most devouring of his food._ _I feel dishonoured,_ I found, as it rang again.

"That would be the door," said Dwalin and looked at me insistently. I swallowed and went to the front door, opened it and looked towards a slightly smaller dwarf.

"Balin, at your service." His hair was long and white, as well as his beard and he wore a reddish hood, under which he probably kept his weapon hidden. "

"Errm... ", I only said when the second dwarf just walked past me and greeted Dwalin heartily, whom he had probably already seen from the door. With a loud _Bam_! they banged their heads together and laughed. It seemed like they hadn't seen each other for a while. After they were eagerly greeted and briefly exchanged about this and that, Balin left his gaze and said:

"It's without a doubt going to be difficult to bring everyone in here. We need a lot of space." Right before I could figure his words out, the doorbell was pressed again. Slowly but surely I doubted that today I could still sit relaxed in front of my fireplace and stretch my legs while having some biscuits and books. I would have preferred to ignore the people at the door and just would have slipped into my warm bed, but I was still not sure whether the two dwarves were really peaceful or not. I sighed, grabbed for the doorknob and stood opposite to two dwarfs this time. Both were a little bit taller than me and, unlike the two before, were very young and a little cheerful.

The left one had dark blond, long hair, he wore like the others a hooded coat with a weapon on his back and had his beard braided to small ponytails. I had to admit, he looked a kind of sympathetic, but I did not show anything. The young dwarf on the right had long hair as well, which was brownish and unlike the other dwarves, he didn't wear a huge beard, actually I could only see some stubbles. The left of them raised his voice and introduced himself:

"Fili"

"...and Kili", added the brown-haired. Both carried out a deep bow and said at the same time:

"At your service!" I stared at them and decided not to let any more dwarves into my house until I exactly knew what was going on here.

,,No no no, I'm sorry, but today I'm not taking any more visitors!" I tried to formulate it politely, even though I was burning inside. Both of them changed their facial expressions from cheerful to disappointed, and when I just wanted to cut the door in front of their noses, the dwarf named Kili put his foot in between.

"Why? Has _it_ been cancelled?" I didn't mind the question and answered annoyed:

"Nothing was cancelled here, w-" But I couldn't finish my sentence because the door was pushed open and I was edged aside.

"Everything is fine then!", laughed Kili and entered with the other dwarf named Fili the room in which Balin and Dwalin were busy moving chairs and tables. Annoyed, I followed them shuffling and fiddled after some time aloud my opinion, when a brief silence arose:

"Excuse me, value dwarves, but I really did not expect visitors today, because actually I wanted to have a quiet evening including enjoying my campfire, which is now completely unrealistic thanks to you; I couldn't even take my long-awaited dinner to myself! Then, you're all _dwarves_ , equipped with axes and what I don't know! But it's all right, don't worry!" They didn't seem to listen to me properly because they were busy standing around my pantry and thinking about something extremely important.

"Apology accepted", Balin said and turned around, looking at the delicious dishes again. My stomach growled. I grumbled quietly in front of me a few more times, stumbled over the coats and weapons that Kili and Fili irresponsibly scattered across the floor and collected them mumbling before I break myself another toe. _These dwarves make me messed, what do they actually allow? Am I now the guest in my own house? I'm going to turn around here..._ Once again the door rang and I was so in rage that I simply smashed Fili and Kilis things against a wall and tramped furiously to the front door. In doing so, I let my mind run wild:

"Oh no, slowly enough, I don't want any more guests, visitors, strangers and a few treacherous little dwarves anymore around here, otherwise I'll do something serious that I'll regret later!" I didn't think of courtesy and formalities now and tear opened the door with a swing to the side. I was struck by several armed bodies with hoods and I could barely dodge the mountain of dwarves. They all fell onto each other and the most plump of them fell to their bad luck, too.

"What the hel-... ugh. Gandalf." I noticed the big grey-clad man with the pointed hat and the wooden rod immediately.

"Good morning", he said broadly smiling and I did not know if I should cry, laugh or just leave uncommented. I sighed loudly and theatrically, so that everyone who's present could feel my noises. But it did not seem to interest them. The dwarves roused themselves grunting, trudgeding through my now polluted hobbit hole and greeted the other four dwarves after they briefly told me their names. Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Ori, Nori, Dori, Oin and Gloin. After half a minute I had already forgotten half, I only kept 'Bombur' in remembrance. While they were all talking loudly about the last events in which I no longer listened, they carried chairs and crockery through the rooms. When they were all about to create a pantry filled with goodies, I resigned:

"Excuse me, but could you perhaps first ask _me_ , the lord of this house, before you clear my entire chamber?" I was not looked at, they just pushed me to the side and let me stare at my own wall. _Did I lose my mind?_  
I decided to go to my bedroom and just wait the annoying evening to end until all twelve dwarves were looking for the widest. And, it would be foolish to put myself against all the armed dwarves and tell them that they should leave my pantry in peace. Annoyed and with a lump in my throat I tramped towards my little cozy bedroom. That's where Gandalf caught me.  
"Bilbo, where do you think you're going? Please give us a little bit of company." Furiously I turned around. An amused grin adorned on his face and in one hand he held his grey pointed hat. I raised my voice and yelled:

"I'm sure I'm not going to bear them company! What they allow here in my home is outrageous. Did you notice the condition of my kitchen or the completely emptied pantry?-"

"Excuse me, Master Bilbo, but where to put my plate?", suddenly asked the young dwarf named Ori, whose name still remained on my lips. I turned to him irritated.

"I don't know, ask Bombur if he wouldn't mind eating it too." He just looked at me bewildered and then went back to the dining room from which he had come. Gandalf seemed to be amused by my reply. I continued speaking undeterredly:

"And then also these stumbling blocks with their coats and axes on the ground, over which I have stumbled at least three times! No Gandalf, I prefer to go to my room and cry myself to sleep. I would recommend this to _you_ , because this back bending of yours does not work very well, you only have a few more years, remember that." Gandalf laughed happily and did not take me serious at all.

"Come on, Bilbo," he said, pushing me in front of him until we arrived in my dining room. The dwarves took short notice of me, but were far too busy cramming the delicacies from my dining room like tomatoes, roasted skewers, freshly baked breads, sausage chains and all sorts of fried vegetables. With clenched eyes and folded arms I leaned against the door frame and watched them feasting. I had to admit, I lost that feeling of hunger and asked myself more how they got so much into their stomachs. The dark blonde dwarf, Fili, came running out of the kitchen and wore several jugs filled with ale on his arms. He stepped on the dining table with his foot and I protested out loud, but my voice went down in the noisy grunting. Fili spilled the ale over the whole table, but managed not to step on a bowl of food and distributed the ale among the dwarves.  
Kili raised his jug and screamed aloud:

"For the sake of my friends! One, two-" And they all plunged on their jugs, chuckling the contents into their throats, while half again flowed down to their beards. I puckered the face and turned away, the rage in me continued to seething.

"What kind of face are you pulling, Bilbo?", asked Gandalf with smugly voice. I did not look at him and just shook my head. _Just leave me alone._  
Later in the evening, after they were all saturated and satisfied, they actually opened up to clean the whole mess on their own. I almost fainted when I saw the mountains of dirty dishes next to the sink, but was relieved that all the dwarves immediately agreed to rinse. So, while they were washing plates and cutlery, they threw it, despite my protest, cheerfully through the air and agreed to a common song that was clearly an insult to me. My anger burned and I was sure the feeling will continue until the next day. I ran after them, threw any trivial words at their head and had to listen to their ridiculous song. When I followed them back to the dining room, suddenly there was a mountain of clean shiny plates and bowls on my dining table. In addition, the cutlery was freshly polished and gourmet-arranged in small containers. Surprised, I stared at the mountain in front of me and counted down all the plates. There seemed to be no one missing.  
All the dwarves laughed happily and grinned at me, and Gandalf sucked smiling on his pipe.  
Suddenly it knocked three times strongly against my front door and it arose a tense silence.  
"He is here", murmured Gandalf dramatically.

 


	3. Royal Presence

I just rolled my eyes and shuffled annoyed at the door another time. _Yet another guest, and let me guess, it's another dwarf who wants to rob me of my evening_ , I wondered grimly. My fingers lay around the doorknob, bored I turned it around and opened the front door.  
I stared in two deep-blue eyes that robbed me my breath so much that my throat tied up and formed a lump. The apparition before me was about a head taller than me and wore a similar mantle as that of the other dwarves, only its colour was royal blue and worked out with a noble white fur.  
He had a striking face, wavy brown hair, which in some places were interwoven with small highlights, and a well-groomed short beard, which left his face even more princely. I swallowed hardly. For some reason I felt embarrassedly touched that my robe was wide open and everyone had a clear view of my slipped nightgown. I grabbed my belt and tied it up provisionally. My opposite seemed to have noticed this, as he was still staring at my hands, who had just nervously made the knot. I cleared my throat uncertain. With an indefinable look, he stared me right in the face and I stared back with my mouth open, unable to get him politely into the house. _Who is... this dwarf in front of me? And... why can't I grasp a clear thought...?_  
Gandalf suddenly popped out of nowhere and helped me out of my awkward position of silence when my opposite recognized him. His unexplaining face changed to a little smile.

"Gandalf," he said in such a deep voice that it shook my mark and remained long in my ears.

"I thought you said this place was easy to find. I lost my way. Twice. "  
I noticed that the other dwarves joined us and I embarrassedly jumped to the side. My opposite was self-assured, his look probably directed at my house or Gandalf, but since I was staring ashamedly at my feet, I did not know it exactly.

"I'd probably have never found it if the sign on the door wouldn't have been there", he said, while elegantly stroking the cloak from his shoulders. I felt my self-confidence flourishing again and responded:

"Sign? There's no sign on the door, I just let it painted a week ago!" And eyed the wooden door from the outside.

"There is a sign, I have attached it myself",  said Gandalf, nodding confirming. I opened my mouth to tell him something about manners, but he continued speaking:  
"Bilbo Baggins," his hand pointed at me, "allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."  
I knew that everyone was now expecting me to turn to this Thorin and I did so just to appease them all.  
In my mind it rattled and I was feverishly wondering where this name was known to me when the dwarf was turning to me. I felt uncertain again for some reason when I looked up at him in the eyes.

"So... this is the hobbit?"  
I didn't know why he had to smile and still sound derogatory. I felt insulted in a way, but on the other hand, oddly, flattered. He folded his muscular arms and suddenly walked around me slowly, his dark eyes seemed to pierce my whole body.

"Tell me, Master Baggins, have you done much fighting?" I stood motionless there and thought about a clever answer, but I did not think of the prompt question.

"Perhaps?", I said unawares.

"Axe or sword? What weapon is your choice?"

 _A butter knife! Pretty dull and ready to spread my bread with treats,_ I thought. I got hungry immediately.

"Um, I prefer the rod! Only for fishing obviously, but I don't know how that's the matter, if you understand what I mean." I tried to loosen up my tension somehow. The other dwarved grinned because of my answer, but the great dwarf in front of me did not distort his mien. I swallowed hard. _I guess it needs to be more than some offensive jokes_ , I considered.  
He was now right in front of me and eyeing me still suspicious. Under his gaze I became strangely nervous and felt a lump rising up in my throat, throbbeding together in harmony of my heart. He seemed to have watched me enough for now.

"I thought it myself... rather a grocer than a master burglar", he said disparaging and turned away. The other dwarves laughed with him and now again occupied my dining room. Slightly offended, I stood there beside Gandalf and wrinkled my nose. I knew he looked at me, but I tried to get out of his way and followed the other dwarves, just to give him a piece of my mind again. _I'm not just going to get caught up in my own house by some rude dwarf. I'm going to trim him_ , I thought offended.

"Master Bilbo, good that you're coming!", screamed Fili suddenly. All the dwarves, except for the valuable Master Oakenshield, looked at me expectantly.

"Just call me Bilbo", I said, waving and pointing Fili to continue talking.

"All right... um, Bilbo, are you so kind to bring something small to our uncle from the kitchen to strengthen him?" _Something small? My power of will, maybe?_ I was outraged that the dwarves, after everything they did in my house today, seriously asked me to _do_ something for them. _Why don't you go into the kitchen yourself and throw a broth together for the value gentleman?_ , I thought annoyed.

"Do I look like the kitchen aid?" I said and defiantly folded my arms above the chest. That for some reason had the effect that Fili and Kili began to laugh loudly. I was indignant and wanted to open my mouth even more angrily, as Gandalf interrupted me:

"Bilbo Baggins, don't harm yourself and bring a little bit of respect and good manners to our guests!"

" _Our_ guests? I never asked for any visitors! I-", I pointed at myself,

"wanted to make me today a leisurely evening in front of my fireside, as these-"  
I was interrupted by Gandalf as he rose from his chair and thundered aloud:

"BILBO BAGGINS, I'VE NEVER MET SUCH A RUDE AND INCOMPETENT HALFLING LIKE YOU! NOW DON'T MAKE A FUSS AND GIVE OUR GUEST, WHO HAS A LONG TIRING WAY BEHIND HIMSELF, SOMETHING TO EAT! This intolerance, I can't believe it..."  
I swallowed hardly and was rather perplexed for the first moment. I loosened my arms from the entanglement and stared darkly at the values of Thorin Oakenshield, whose face I could not see, as he sat with his back to me. Surely his face adorns a satisfied grin, I thought furiously.  
I turned uplifted my head and tramped annoyed towards the kitchen. While I was preparing a small soup from the remaining ingredients, the laughter of Fili and Kili echoed in my ears for a long time. _Why didn't the two take me serious? Even the other dwarves noticed that I was angry and the whole thing was not really laughable at all... Why am I always humiliated and laughed at by others? Is it because of my appearance, the way I dress, my size? Impossible. They're dwarves. Maybe I should just ask them_... "I wondered.  
I filled the steaming soup in a small bowl, brought out cutlery and, after a short hesitation, went back to the dining room. When I entered, the dwarves were just involved in a loud discussion and went silent when they discovered me.  
_Bad conscience, huh?_  
Without delighting anyone, I put the long-awaited soup right before Lord Oakenshield and wanted to turn around again as he briefly caught my look with his deep blue eyes.

"Thank you", he murmured quietly and a little smile vanished, which disappeared again in the next second. Overwhelmed, I just nodded and left the room before anyone -Gandalf-could stop me from doing so.  
With quick steps I went to my bedroom, locked the door behind and dropped me on my soft bed, into which I easily infiltrated. I wanted to sleep now, but the hunger controlled me. After all the excitement and slurping of the dwarfs, it briefly passed away and now resigned twice as much. I reached into my coat pocket and stared at the tiny-looking pear biscuit in my hand. Since I had no other choice and I did not dare to go back to the dwarfs after my action, I nibbled aloof at my biscuit. I almost closed my eyes, until the guests from my dining room came to my mind and I slapped myself to stay awake.

 

 

  
After some time I heard close voices on my ear and opened my eyes harshly. I seriously fell asleep.

"Damn it, Gandalf, get out of my bedroom!", I grumbled and rubbed my eyes. But there was no grey-clad man with pointed hat and wooden staff standing in front of me.  
There were Fili and Kili.

"Oh, it's you", I murmured indifferently, and sat up. The two said nothing, but stared at me with grinning faces.

"How long have I been absent? "I asked and brushed my clothes smooth.

"Not for long, my dear Bilbo, perhaps about an hour or something", said Kili.  
I nodded and ran both hands over my face.

"Did I miss anything important?"  
The two nodded grinning.

"Definitely, you didn't get the reason for our visit and also why we need _you_ of all people", Fili said mysteriously.

"Interesting", I murmured, still not escaping sleep.

"You know, we've already missed you, and we just wanted to see where you're left off. You have a very nice bedroom right here, I have to admit", found Kili and nodded confirming. I did not know if he meant anything special with this remark and did not go on to it.

"Well, do you come back to us? We were going to discuss some little things with you", meant Kili.  
I couldn't get them out of my room politely and just nodded, therefore, still not completely escaping the fatigue.

"Alright you troublemakers", I said confirming and scrambled me up. The two brothers, so I assumed, giggled quietly and went ahead. _Funny guys these two..._  
As we walked towards the dining room, I thought feverishly what I could say to the other dwarves as an excuse for my disappearance.

"Uncle, you were right, Bilbo was taking a nap indeed!", shouted Kili suddenly and let my body freeze.  
_Does he have to shout that out loud? Now, everyone really thinks I am an old man, who has to be on time for a nap in his long-awaited bed._  
I felt the color gathering in my face and ran purple, both from shame and from anger.  
I turned to Kili:

"Of course, tell everyone that I kept a short regenerative nap; honestly, this was definitely justified after thirteen unannounced dwarves devastated my house and ate", I pointed at Bombur to replay my shame, "my entire pantry completely empty! Mustn't your seams almost burst open soon? Hold on, wait, I think I've already seen one or the other button flying around the air, you better collect them, or else another one gets one into their head." I nodded at Bifur. Bombur seemed grieved to my satisfaction, but the other dwarves laughed loudly, while Bifur probably insulted me in Dwarvish. Their grin stuck on me and I grinned back until I noticed a certain view of a certain person. Thorin Oakenshield looked so sinister that my grin froze and my throat was laced. It was a cold, disgusted look that even scared me a little. I swallowed heavily and escaped the cold deep blue eyes only when he turned his face off. With a lowered gaze I stared at the floor and tried to replay what just happened.  
_Fear... I haven't had such a feeling in a long time, but why was it triggered by him? What... made me feel afraid of him? Was it at all because of him or was it generally the whole situation? Probably, because for what reason should I be afraid of a little dwarf? Ridiculous!,_ circled my thoughts.  
The tension didn't stop until late in the evening, the dwarves talked about a kind of mission and the urge to retake something, while I listened only with half my ear. At some point, I was pressed a huge page of parchment in my hand, on which it said something of possible funeral costs when I fell into a faint for a short term. I knew the dwarves must have been laughing at me, but I didn't really care when I was sitting on a chair next to the table again. After some time I had warped myself a little away into a corner and listened to them silently, half attentively, half sunk in my own thoughts.  
When they talked about a battle that took place a long time ago, I also knew again how the name was known to me.  
In my house there is a legend, the king under the mountain, who is entitled to the title of "King" alone with his unforgettable presence... _I should probably go to bed now_ , I thought and was not the only one with this thought.  
Balin, the smaller dwarf with the long white beard, spoke to me with a sincere voice:

"Master Bilbo, if you don't mind, we'd like to spend a night in your wonderful house. Of course, only if it doesn't make any fuss."  
I knew I couldn't shake them all off and since I actually had guestrooms, I agreed to my own surprise. It was probably due to sleep deprivation.  
I divided two to three brothers each for a common room: Oin and Gloin, Ori, Nori and Dori, Bifur, Bofur and Bombur, for whom I still had to find a pile of blankets for paddling, Balin and Dwalin, Kili and Fili, who insisted on getting the bedroom right next to mine, and finally Thorin Oakenshield, for whose room I had to think of something, because I had no more available. When we both stood in silence in the hallway, I started stammering:

"Er, the problem is now, I, uh, have no, uhm... no more guestrooms there. "  
His majestic face turned to me, the blue eyes drilled deep into mine and seemed to be able to read all my thoughts. _Don't look at me like that and answer me_ , I thought, but I was like being frozen and just felt the pushy beating against my neck. I could not even swallow, as a lump has once again formed in my throat and withhold me any air to breathe. The moment of gazing seemed to stop to infinity until Thorin scarcely asked:

"And now?"

My ears rang when I heard his deep voice again, and I barely shook my head to get rid of it.

"W-well, you could, of course, er, well, only if it's agreeable, you, my, um-... "

"Yes?", he asked, and came one step closer.

"H-have my bedroom", I said and did not notice the heat in my face.

"Sounds decent", he said with his deep harsh voice, and looked at me forcefully. I got a warmer face.  
I swallowed heavily, stepped aside and opened the door to my room just so I could disappear as soon as possible.  
Thorin seemed to have looked at the room briefly, until he turned to me again and quietly asked

"And where are you going to sleep, Master Baggins?"

"Uhm, I'll find a place for myself."  
Skeptically he looked at me.

"Sure? I would'nt mind sharing a room with my nephews", he said, looking insistently into my eyes. I felt small under his gaze and tried to dodge him.

"I can live with that", I tried to say as indifferently as possible, went into my bedroom and quickly closed the door without saying anything anymore.  
_Gandalf is definitely, without a doubt going to kill me for my unkindness,_ I thought, but I didn't care about that at this time.  
With an unaesy feeling and a dry neck I pulled the robe from my shoulders, laid down in my bed and closed my eyes.  
At last I could sleep undisturbed.

 


	4. A Mis-Adventure

My head was throbbing as the warm daylight fell on my face. I rubbed over my weary eyes, yawned extensively and slowly set myself up in my cuddlesome bed.  
It was so beautifully quiet and peaceful, very different from yesterday evening. _Are the Dwarves still here? Please not..._  
I quickly snatched and dressed up, today I decided to wear a white shirt and a brown trousers with orange striped braces. I stroked my top smooth, walked through the bedroom door and shuffleded through the hallways. _No one present. Good_.  
Armed with a bowl of porridge I sat down at my dining table and noticed the piece of parchment from yesterday evening only after I finished eating. I briefly overflew the headline.

_An adventure for our esteemed master burglar, the hobbit Bilbo Baggins._

I didn't know if I should be honored or offended. But there was one thing I knew for sure: I'll take part of this adventure, just to come down on Gandalf like a ton of bricks with my presence and revenge yesterday's chaos.  
The page of parchment was signed by Balin and Thorin Oakenshield, whose name was emblazoned in a beautiful curved hand writing on the last paragraph. I noticed then the empty white field, in which my signature was probably required. I immediately grabbed a pen, scribbled my initials in the field and carefully folded the parchment side together. I brought out my backpack, stuffed some groceries and a few garments in and buckleded a little blanket on it. I then pulled a slightly warmer dark green shirt over and slipped into my favourite wine-red coloured jacket with shiny brass buttons. I shouldered the backpack and when I already wanted to go out of the door, the contract-like document came to my mind and I grabbed it.  
I ran and ran, the second breakfast completely forgot and jumped over the fences, wheelbarrows and carefully planted flowers of others.  
At the end of the road I discovered a group of dwarves riding ponies and shouted out of breath and at the end of my stamina:

"Wait! Wait for me!"  
The ponies stopped and I outran the dwarves snorting. As I rebounded briefly my breathing aloud and squeezed my hands into my sides, the dwarves looked at me expectantly.

"I... ", I started and swallowed unrecovered,

"I signed it! Convince yourselves."  
I thrusted the piece of parchment into Balin's hand, who happened to stand right next to me with his pony and briefly flew over my initials.

"Everything seems to have its correctness", he said expertly and handed me the contract again. I turned around and spotted Fili and Kili, who apparently rejoiced at my appearance and grinned at me. I grinned back and looked up at Gandalf, who as always had a satisfied _I_ _know you, just believe me one time-_ smile on his lips. I'd have preferred to have my tongue poked out now, but that'd have worked pretty much below my level and I'd rather have it stay it like now, especially since everyone could have seen me at that moment.

"Give him a pony", ordered Thorin in his deep-handed voice and made me shudder briefly when I then recovered myself again.

"P-pony? Oh no, I don't need one, I can also easily keep up on foot, let that be my concern!" Thorin looked down on me from his big black pony.

"Without a doubt, Master Baggins", he said coldly, turning back elegantly with the horse forward.

"Move on! "  
I was suddenly lifted up and straddle-legged set with my backpack on the back of a slightly smaller pony. I suppressed a scream as it hurt me at some point and bit my teeth together. Fili and Kili were the two who were responsible for this short fright and grinned at me happily.

"Good to see you, Bilbo! To what do we own the honor?", asked Kili cheerfully.

"Definitely not that you're squeezing me my soft parts!" I said aloud and angled my legs to a more comfortable seating position. Fili and Kili laughed and I'd have loved to wipe the grin out of their faces.

"That's not funny!"

"It's not? What, is your family planning still in full swing?", asked Fili teasingly. For no reason I felt the heat in my face and lowered my gaze. I didn't know why I suddenly felt such a moving knot in my stomach. _That's weird. Why do I react that... emotional on a sarcastic remark? That's not how I know myself! Actually, I should always have a snippy response laying on my tongue, but I... don't remember anything. Did it get too close to me? Impossible, I've heard worse than that!,_ I thought. My fingers drove nervously through the gold-blonde mane of my pony.

"Bilbo?", asked Fili and in his voice resonated some kind of apprehension.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to take the mood with my dumb question." I stopped him with a wave of my hand, myself uncertain why I reacted so strangely, but I remained silent.

"Well... why exactly have you decided to take part of our daring assignment now? "asked Kili quickly. I still remained silent, my thoughts still revolved around the first question. _Why did it get that close to me? Fili meant this obviously as a joke and yet I feel personally attacked... It's not his fault when I'm strangely so sensitive about it. That's not me. I like to admit that I have written off a family life and much prefer to sit in front of the fire-place in the evening alone._  
When I shook my head and my ears again catched sounds, Fili and Kili have already changed the subject. _Out of boredom because of my short silence, or were they just letting me have my liberties?_  
Suddenly I had a strong tingling in my nose and I sneezed so loudly that I was frightened and almost slipped out of the saddle.

"Eek! Horse hair...", I said and knocked the fine hairs of the jacket

"Am terribly allergic." I rummaged in my jacket pockets, but wasn't able to find anything.

"Damn it! ... Stop! Stop, we have to turn around! "The dwarves stopped and horrified glances were directed at me. From the corner of my eye I saw Thorin, who rolled his eyes vexed. I quickly took my look off of him before my face could heaten up again when Kili asked

"Why? What's the problem?" I cleared my throat pompous.

"I forgot my handkerchief!" I only reaped the laughs of the dwarves who turned back forward again and looked inquiringly at Gandalf, who, of course, had a grin on his lips.

"What?", I asked stubbornly.

"My dear Bilbo, you will probably have to get along without things like your beloved handkerchiefs for a while." _You can as well interpret this differently._.. I rolled my eyes, now questioning whether this adventure was a good decision or not.

"And how am I supposed to wipe my nose? I don't think anyone would find it very appetizing if I wiped everything off my jacket", I said dryly.  
Bofur, who rode right in front of me, tore himself a piece of cloth from the brown trousers and threw it to me with the words:

"Here, take this!", grinning. I caught it surprised and puckered the face as I held the filthy shred in my hand.

"Um, well, yes, thank you very much Bofur, but I really have greater demands." He nodded grinning and his cap bobbed up and down.

"You really are a bustling halfling, Bilbo. Speaking of!", he shouted aloud, unbagged a small sack of coins from his cloak pocket and threw it amusedly up.

"Your bags of gold, please!" Some of the dwarves groaned, others were grinning over both ears and bags of coins tinkled everywhere, which were then happily thrown across the area.

"What's the matter now?", I asked turning to Gandalf. He seemed to be amused and got out his pipe.

"They decided to bet whether you're joining us or not. Some have gone even further and have bet how picky you will be." I got sensitive.

"Picky, oh really? Who thinks that of _me_?", I asked sourly.

"Oh, there's someone coming into my mind who predicated that."  
His gaze slipped to the first rider of our company, who was of course no other than the famous Thorin Oakenshield. I discovered the many gold bags that peeked out of his pockets. When the next one flew to him he caught it, turned around with waving hair and gave me a mischievous grin. I turned away and nervously cought slightly while awkwardly touched. My face was tomato-coloured.

 

 

  
After we rode some time through lush green meadows and along pleasant rippling rivers, I felt an empty feeling in my stomach. I rubbed my stomach queasy and in the next moment he started to rumble loudly. Heads turned to me and looked at me forehead frowning. In my defense, I said aloud:

"Hey, don't you look at me like that! Because of _you_ I had to give up my second breakfast; this is really a generous act on my part!"

"We can positively take a short break", Kili said glancing in the direction of Thorin. He looked indifferently and seemed to have sunk in his thoughts. Suddenly my stomach complained where his eagerly desired food remained again and I hold my belly insecurely laughing.

"Sorry?", I said, and avoided all the dwarves's gazes. I noticed that Fili and Kili grinned at me. A brief silence arose.

"We will ride a little further north and then look for a place to rest at night", said Thorin with his deep, haunting voice. Everyone nodded approvingly and set the ponies in motion. Fili and Kili joined me and seemed to want to wrap me in a conversation.

"Tell me, Bilbo, how comes that someone like you in your... age... doesn't have a wife yet? Or did she die?", asked Fili.

"Don't ask for it unprepared", said Kili, but Fili didn't heed him. He looked at me waiting. I looked annoyed at Kili.

"Do you really think you have to mentally prepare me before asking any questions? I really don't not know why I reacted that strange to Filis remark earlier, too. But that doesn't mean you have to deal very gently with me now", I said honest. Kili looked tentative to Fili. Slowly, their concern was really too much.

"Now, to answer your question, I don't want a life partner. And I think thiat feeling is mutual. Bag End is enough as it is, I love to sit alone in the evening by my fireside and smoke a pipe with relish. A woman would just be out of place, especially since I like to be silent."  
Both didn't seem to be convinced, I could see that on their faces, but they nodded understandingly. I had to cheer up the bad mood and I did what I liked best:  
Grating on somebody's nerves. I thought of who could be my next target and stared at Bofur, who rode right in front of me.  
Loudly, I shouted:

"Just tell me one thing Bofur, why are you wearing this cute little hat on your head? Do these wipers clap your ears as well if you were naughty?" Fili and Kili giggled and Bofur turned indignantly around. I grinned and said:

"Let's drop it. I have to ask all of you something else. Why are your whole names almost identical to those of your brothers? I mean, did your parents just not have any passion to think of different names so they just threw meaningless letters up, or maybe they just lacked of cognitive skills to do that? Without the purpose on offending your parents, of course." I knew I went too far and the dwarves would skin me alive, but they just laughed. I noticed Gandalf in front at the top of our company as he shook his head. Next to him, Thorin was perched on his beautiful pony; he did not seem to have heard my remark, or simply just not responded to it in a comprehensible way. He slightly lowered his head and when some walnut-brown wisp of hair fell into his face, he threw it over his shoulder in an elegant movement. I looked away quickly, because my cheeks seemed to heat up again for some reason. In a hurry I tried not to let myself be noted by pulling the attention of the dwarves back on me.

"Say, who does that remember you of?" I just sat down with my head raised and threw my short curls exactly in the same movement as Thorin over my shoulder, just a little more energetic. The dwarves snorted with laughter while Fili and Kili copied my movements and all eyes switched conspicuously in Thorins direction. He noticed the riots behind his back and turned angrily with his pony to us.

"What are you spreading for a noise? Who of you is responsible for this?" His grave gaze drove over every dwarf. Dori in front of me had a broad grin set up. Thorin noticed it and raised inquiringly an eyebrow.

"Hm?"

"I'm sorry, Thorin, but our little burgl- ", said Dori, faltering.  
I had to blame myself, it was my fault. Dori looked at me apologetically with widened eyes and I didn't respond to it, but waited Thorin's probably deadly judgement. He sampled me disparaging and then, with a threatening voice, said:

"Baggins, you are riding in the forefront from now on and do not distract the others from our mission. Otherwise, we need to take on stronger measures."  
He turned around again and set his pony in motion. My neck was dusty dry and I exclaimed nervous:

"With _you_?"  
And in the next moment I hoped he hadn't heard it.  
_Why can't I just be quiet?_  
Thorins gaze was rigidly directed forward.

"Yes, with me", he said dryly.  
I swallowed hard and would have preferred to go back to hide under my warm blankets, when Bofur gave my pony a pat. Solidified sitting still, my pony trotted up to the beginning of our company and stopped with the steps of Thorin's pony, which was now right next to me. As straight as a pole and with an exerted forward looking gaze I crouched in the saddle. _Don't look to the left, don't look to the left, don't look to the left, Bilbo. Don't. Do. It._ I leered to the left.  
Thorin looked attentively forward to the pale green meadows and noticed my gaze immediately. His deep blue eyes met mine and I quickly looked away again.  
_Embarrassing. Embarrassing. Embarrassing. Embarrassing. And why is my face so warm again?_


	5. Everything Hurts

After a feeling of eternity in which I had only stared at the front all the time, we found a big rock with small niches on a mountain, which should provide us with a little protection. But I didn't know who or what we needed to be protected from and didn't want to know that precise. _When it comes to the crunch I'll let myself be surprised_ , I thought, because I didn't want to worry unnecessarily. Our company slowly came to a stop and I was sincerely grateful for it. After that day everything ached; my butt, my soft parts, my back and my snarling belly. I was astonished that I had not fallen dead before food shortage, far alone not begged for some.

"Everything. Hurts. All. Of. It", I wailed, I didn't care who heard it. Kili hopped from his pony and grinned at me.

"Seriously... everything?"

"Yes, because of you both in fact everything!", I nagged annoyed and Kili chuckled. I didn't take it further and tried to get out of my saddle, but when I said that everything was hurting, it sure was without a doubt. I hissed in pain when I wanted to lift my right leg and broke off.  
_Great, now somebody's got to help me off of the pony. I pity myself. Who would be the best to ask? Gandalf, Fili, Kili?_  
While I was reviewing all the others had already risen from their ponies and now prepared the night camp. Thorin decided responsibly who should pick wood, prepare food or unload the luggage. The dwarves readily obeyed him and immediately devoted themselves to the obligations they had given them. _Kili falls away, he has to go to the other dwarves to collect wood. Fili seems to want to create a kind of sleeping corner with the others, although I'm not sure if-... Oh, now he's picking up the sleeping bags. Where's Gandalf? Did he crawl somewhere and pull his pipe out for the first time after a long ride? It wouldn't surprise me..._  
I would have preferred to join him, but I was trapped on a pony that was slowly getting really spiteful.

"Ouch! Stop moving, it hurts! It's not my fault when you have such a crooked back and crush me every muscle. ... Ouch! Stop it", I shouted while holding the reins tightly clutched. With my shouts I seemed to have drawn a little attention on myself, but I wouldn't have thought of the Lord Oakenshield himself. He drew closer to me and seemed visibly upset. I swallowed hard. His _wonderf_ -wondrous deep blue eyes found mine and I ran a cold shiver over my back.

"Baggins, get off the horse and get to work! We don't have the whole day to listen to your whining!" When he arrived at my place he asked imperious:

"What's your matter at all?"  
I tried hard to find the right words, but his haunting eyes didn't let me take a clear thought.

"I-I... e-erm... well-..." Impossible he could overlook the crimson colour of my cheeks. _Very kind of him that he doesn't go into it immediately, although I don't even know an answer to that._  
"Well?", he asked more urgently and folded his arms. I took all my courage together and said quietly:

"I, u-um I'm can't come off." He kept a straight face.

"And why is that, Baggins?"  
_Baggins? Why don't you talk with me using my first name, damn it!_ , I wanted to shout, but could still bite my tongue. I probably wouldn't have dared to do that anyway.

 "W-well, that's because I-... erm, to be honest, every single part of my body is hurting."

Thorin raised his eyebrows skeptically, but I could see a little amused grin on his lips, which immediately vanished again.  
Suddenly two strong hands laid around my hips and lifted me up effortlessly. Right next to the pony, I was dropped off. It went so fast that I had no time to protest or feel any pain. Now I stood by surprise and felt my cheeks throbbing with heat. My mouth was dry and I was unbearably warm.

"Right, and now make yourself useful", said Thorin and just went on.  
I stared after him until I noticed that I held my breath frighted and breathed deeply. I still felt his big hands on my hips and quickly stroked my jacket smooth. _What's happening with me..._

 

  
We just finished with adjusting our night camp when the dusk fell over us. It was dark, but the bright moon and the numerous stars shone on our faces. Bombur had prepared a kind of soup and handed us steaming bowls.

"Here, Bilbo", he already filled the next one before I could go,

"bring this to Thorin." I rolled annoyed my eyes.

"I'm not only your kitchen aid but your errand boy too? Do it yourself", I said but already held the bowl in my hand. I grumbled and went out of line to look for Thorin. If Bombur knew why I wasn't up for meeting Thorin, he wouldn't probably be able to take me seriously anymore. I didn't know why but this dwarf makes me nervous. _Might be because he is the king under the mountain, the king of all dwarves. I've never met such a high person._  
My mind ended when I recognised him. He sat with the other dwarves at the campfire, next to Kili and Dwalin and leaned against a rock behind him. The dwarves talked excitedly while he was staring tensely into the hissing fire. With an uneasy feeling and shaky knees I went up to them but sat down quickly beside Fili, who was sitting on the left of Kili. He smiled at me and patterned the two bowls in my hands.

"Kind of you, but I've eaten already", he said in a wink. I wanted to sigh with exhaustion, but didn't do it.

"It's not for you. Have to play the errand boy for Bombur and strengthen someone higher than the Royal Guard. Hand it over to Thorin, please", I said wearily. Filis grey eyes pierced me, then he took the bowl and passed it on. I didn't want to see Thorin's reaction to it, he probably had something to criticize, so I crawled hypocritical behind Fili and spooned my soup bowl empty. I hadn't expected much from the dwarves' cooking skills, but had to admit that this what Bombur fabricated there was really good.

"Tastes, eh?", asked Fili amused while I nibbled at the spoon. I stopped with that immediately.

"Um... yes."

"I'm sure you can have some more, you've eventual endured long enough without your second breakfast or lunch", he said. I declined.

"No, everything's fine, I don't want to eat all of your food up." Fili grinned.

"But that would just be fair. Come on, let's go, I can see how empty your stomach is." He nudged me energetically.

"I would hate to get up now and draw any kind of attention to myself", I quipped, but with some seriousness. Fili giggled and leaped dynamically. He grabbed the bowl out of my hand, stepped to the steaming bronze cauldron, filled it and went back wide grinning again.

"Here you are, Master Baggins. Enjoy your meal", and he bowed deeply.

"Thank you my lackey", I said and took the dish. Fili looked at me indignantly.

"Hey, I do think I'm in a higher position! How about... being your personal life guard who's always by your side with advice?" I slurped the soup.

"Sounds good." Fili sat down satisfied. Suddenly Kili turned to us and said aloud:

"You both may be a bunch.Tell me, can I join you?" My self-confidence returned slowly but surely from the food strengthened. I felt the power in me and the strong urge of spoiling anyone the day after it was so nerve-wracking for me.  
_And without taking pipe herb to me today..._

"What's the matter, Kili? Is the king under the mountain too long-winded and you would much rather spend your time with us sleek gentlemen?" I tried to say it as snippy as possible. Fili beside me inhaled sharply but couldn't resist on making a wide grin. Kili looked shocked to his right.  
My triumph vanished when I looked in Thorin's face. He looked at me so hateful and angry that my blood froze in my veins and I was already ready to jump up and run away.  
_I have offended a king, even worse, the king of Dwarves, who were known for their cruelty and brutality. He's going to beat me to death with his fists, cracking all my bones and lastly tying my throat with his hands. With his strong hands, which were not long ago on my hips..._  
I quickly shook my head to get rid of the uneasy feeling. I couldn't stand his look.

"E-erm... sorry?"  
Before I waited for any reaction from the others I quickly got up, dashed my shirt smoothly and trampeded in the opposite direction so I was out of their perspective. Briefly I breathed deeply and suddenly discovered Gandalf, who walked right out of my direction with a pipe in his mouth.

"Gandalf, where have you been? Wait, he just smokes his pipe of weed somewhere in a corner and that without me! I don't believe it."  
He pulled at the pipe and looked at me testing.

"Rude as no one else, that Bilbo Baggins", he said and passed me to go to the dwarves near the campfire.

"Wretched magician... To what right does he own that staff at all?", I murmured, staring at him with clenched eyes. I didn't know what to do now because I couldn't go back to the campfire unless I wanted to shovel my own grave and I couldn't go back to Bag End for that it was too dark for my eyes to see anything. I spotted a dark red apple in the travel bag of Ori and grabbed it. _I have yet to settle a bill..._  
When I arrived next to my pony, I handed her the apple and she accepted it with gratitude. I stroked her over the mane and patted her gently down her throat.

"I'm truly sorry about earlier, you're a good one, Myrtle. Your back isn't crooked, I'm just completely untrained about riding, please don't blame me." And she snuggled her nose on my shoulder.

 

 

  
"Bilbo? Will you join us again?"  
Fili came nearer and looked at me questioningly. I nodded and followed him, I didn't really have a choice anyway. The fatigue was transiting my body and still every part of my body ached. I just wanted to cuddle up in a sleeping bag and close my eyes.  
_Maybe someone else might join me..._  
I cleared my throat to replay my strange thoughts. When we were back at the campfire, I recognised many of the dwarves sitting in the alcove near the sleeping bags. To my relief, I couldn't see Thorin anywhere.  
I joined Fili and Kili who have laid out three sleeping bags next to each other.

"You can sleep here next to us, Bilbo. Then we can still talk a little bit about this and that", said Kili. I nodded and slipped immediately into my sleeping bag; It was at the moment pleasantly warm.

"What would you like to talk about?", I asked easily shivering, I just noticed now that I had been unbearable cold. Fili and Kili also crept into their sleeping bags but remained upright in contrast to me and looked at me thoughtfully.

"Never mind... You know, I actually have a question for you, too. How comes that you two agreed going on this trip? I mean, you both were raised in the Blue Mountains and not in Erebor like the others."  
Fili and Kili looked at each other at the same time.

"Let's just say we didn't want to let our friends down, rather to do with them this adventure to support them on every occasion", explained Kili. I nodded understanding, for me that sounded really plausible. Fili giggled quietly.

"And we promised our mother to look after Thorin." Inscrutable arose a weird feeling in my belly, a sort of emptiness. It didn't want to go away and I got nervous.

"Oh. E-er-Thorin is your... father then?"  
Suddenly a roaring laughter sounded and I stared at Fili incomprehensiblely with an open mouth. Kili also agreed and the two laughed their throats sore.

"What? Did I say anything wrong?"  
Fili wiped a tear from his eyes chuckling and shook his head. Since he was obviously not able to answer my question, Kili chuckling as well jumped in:

"So Bilbo, you really think that _Thorin_ is our father? No, he's not. Thorin is the brother of our mother, hence our uncle. I'm not even sure if Thorin knows what it means to have a relationship. "  
I was very attentive and now I was much more alert. I wanted to know more about it.

"He... he doesn't have a wife then? Or a husband?", I asked.  
Fili and Kili changed knowledgeable looks.

"You have to consider every possibilities", I said defending and rolled my eyes. Fili couldn't stop smiling.

"No, he doesn't. I dare doubt that he has ever shown any interests towards another person."  
I nodded interested and became frightened of how similar Thorin and I were in this case. I too have never felt any kind of... attraction.

"To be honest, Thorin is quite a beginner in this area. I think he doesn't even know how new dwarves are emerging", said Kili, laughing mockingly. Fili agreed.

"Aye and it's always getting so funny when it comes to bring a new successor!"  
Both laughed silly and I agreed nervously. _I don't know it myself... And don't want to know._  
Of course they noticed my insecurity and looked at me with big eyes.

"Don't say you don't know, either!", shouted Kili indignantly.

"B-but of course", I only brought off and my cheeks blushed.

"Oooh how cute, the little hobbit is inexperienced as well! Now we found two...", Fili delighted. I pricked my ears.

"What do you mean by that?", I asked nervously.

"Nothing, nothing", murmured Fili grinning at me.  
_Whatever is going on in their minds..._


	6. Wishful Thinking

Suddenly a loud bawl sounded. I winced and sat bolt upright in my sleeping bag.

"What was that?" I asked with pointed ears. Fili and Kili exchanged short glances.

"Orcs. Cutthroats. They come at night when everyone's asleep and cut their throats very quietly; no one's left behind. There's plenty of blood but no screams", said Kili gloomy. My eyes widened and I felt my heart beating faster and the blood in my veins throbbing.  
Fili and Kili giggled quietly, apparently delighted with my panic reaction. I looked around carefully and suddenly realized a silhouette near the smoking campfire, which to my fright, was no less than Thorin. _Oh damn- did he hear our conversation the whole time? Oh. My. God. Let me die, please._  
Our eyes met and I felt so uncomfortable that I slipped a few more centimeters into my sleeping bag. _No way he had forgotten that from before. I'm sure he'll accuse me again and again. Why did I describe a king as 'long-winded' in the first place?_  
Thorin broke our gaze and looked exasperated at Kili.

"Do you really think you don't have to be afraid of orcs, have no respect for what they do? Orcs are filthy, sanguinary and yearn for the screams of their victims", said Thorin in his harsh deep voice and made me shrink back. For some reason I thought of something else.  
_I know of other methods in which someone yearns for the cries of their 'victims'. And Fili and Kili assumed I'd be inexperienced..._  
I immediately remarked these thoughts from my memory. Kili seemed intimidated and said with a lowered gaze:

"We're sorry, Thorin, we thought nothing of it."

"As always", he grumbled and looked lost in thoughts in the direction from where the noise came.  
Out of nowhere Balin showed up and settled down with his sleeping bag next to mine. _So that'd be it with the whispering about this and that... Poor Kili._

"Don't blame him, Thorin had to suffer terrible things with orcs..." And he told of the epic battle between the dwarves of the royal house and the pale orc Azog, the molester. While he was narrating I kept staring over at Thorin and imagined him in combat.  
_In shining iron armor; his long fingers clasped the handle of his deadly sword; his eyes shone deep blue ready for a battle; the walnut-brown hair was swirled by the wind and framed his beautiful face._ Kili bent down to me.

"Bilbo, you're drooling."  
I swallowed and looked away quickly while my face coloured tomato-red. Balin told the story to end and Thorin turned to us. He nodded to Balin thankfully and turned to go, but I had a question on my lips:

"What happened to Azog? Is he still alive?"  
Thorin looked deep into my eyes and seemed to inspect me closely.

"He died from his wounds a long time ago and will not come back", he said coldly.  
Again, I slipped under his stony glance a few inches back into my sleeping bag. As always he broke our eye contact and vanished in the niche from which he came, but this time he put his back to us.  
Gandalf, who was sitting nearby and pulling his pipe looked closely into my eyes and shook his head almost imperceptibly. _Means Azog is still alive..._  
I turned aside just to stare in Balin's eyes and quickly turned on my back to watch the stars. After some time and long thoughts I finally fell asleep under the shining starry sky.

 

 

  
The next day we rode up 'til late afternoon without particular taking breathers to set up. My limbs were stiff and ached strongly, especially my buttocks seemed to be as good as dead.

"I wouldn't be surprised if I got hemorrhoids", I grumbled to myself. I forgot that I rode right next to Thorin again and he undoubtedly heard it. Cautiously I leered to the left just to see Thorin with a chuckle. My cheeks blushed. I had to fast say something.

"E-erm, o-of course I didn't mean it such literally", I stammered and choked.  
Thorin looked up and smiled sardonically at me which led to my cheeks colouring even more red.

"Obviously", he said sarcastically.

"D-don't you feel the same?", I asked and laughed nervously.  
_He bit his lip._ No, those were just my thoughts. Sleep deprivation did me no good.

"No," he said honest. I just nodded silly, quickly looked forward again and knocked Myrtle awkwardly down her throat.

"We will seek shelter and take a break, so just hold on a little", he encouraged me. I nodded briefly and was surprised that he seemed to care a little about my well-being. What he did with every dwarf.  
After some time it poured into streams and I growled at Gandalf what a miserable magician he was who couldn't even control the weather. The whole time I was worried about the fact that I'd also catch a blister infection with the hemorrhoids.  
At some point we found a burned-out wooden hut and Thorin decided to build the camp here.

"Here we can not stay, Thorin! These houses weren't burned for no reason... we should ride south", said Gandalf and was about to put himself back on his horse.

"South? Is there a certain place in your mind, Gandalf? I told you already, we're not going to call for help from the elves." Gandalf seemed disgruntled.

"You dwarves and your stubbornness, it's almost as bad as Bilbo's impoliteness." I wanted to protest but Gandalf continued speaking undeterred.

"Sooner or later you will need the help of the elves, whether you like it or not. Be glad that they are now giving you the helping hand and use this gesture too. We still have a map that none of us can read and I'm sure the Lord Elrond will be able to."  
Thorin shouted angry:

"The elves are not cooperative without an ulterior motive! They will never support us from free hand, not back then and not today! We renounce their _hospitality_."  
Gandalf mounted his horse furious.

"Where are you going?", I asked.  
"I've had enough dwarves for a day. I will deal with other activities, you can do what you want", he said explicitly and tread another path.  
I gazed after him flabbergasted and felt immediately unprotected. _Having a magician around really is something to be said,_ I found.  
Thorin turned furious to us.

"We build our shelter here and stay overnight!"  
No one contradicted him and they loaded their food bags from the ponies.  
After the night's lodging had been prepared and the cauldron seethed over the fire, Bofur handed me two bowls of food. By this time it was pitch-dark and the half moon loomed high above us.

"Bring this to the lads, they're taking care of the ponies right now." I nodded, took the reinforcements and looked out for Fili and Kili. _And again, I'm the errand boy._ I found the two standing a little farther away from our camp in front of the entrance to a dark forest. I went up to them and held the bowls out but they didn't notice me at all.

"What's the pitch?" Fili and Kili stared into the darkness.

"We had sixteen ponies", began Kili,

"and now it's only fourteen", ended Fili. I felt uncomfortable. We searched the resting places of the ponies but couldn't find the other two.  
"That's not good", I said uncertain. We went a little more further, I still held the bowls in my hand and instantly discovered a large tree that has been stepped on in the middle.

"And _that's_ not good, either. Shouldn't we tell the others perhaps?"  
Kili shook his head.

"With 'the others' you mean Thorin? No, the problem isn't that big now."

"You, as our master burglar could take a look at the forest", said Fili convinced.

"Oh, well... see, this _thing_ seems pretty big, don't you think? And strong, especially as it can tread trees...", I tried to make excuses.  
Fili stared at once at a certain point in the forest.

"There's light. Look."  
Kili and I crept to him and I put the bowls with food on the stump in front of us. We looked at the flickering light which turned out as a big campfire and heard a loud laugh abruptly.

"What exactly was that?", I whispered.

"Trolls", said Kili with clenched teeth and he and his brother ran to the fire. I followed them, of course not without forgetting the soup bowls and saw to my shock one of the trolls. I quickly hid behind a tall gnarled tree. The troll held two of our ponies under his arms, his body was big and pale and he was dressed with nothing but a filthy pinafore. After he passed I turned outraged at Fili and Kili:

"Ugh, they took Myrtle and Minty! We have to do something."

"Yes, you should!", said Kili, pushing me in the direction of the trolls,

"trolls are dull-witted and you are so small, they will never see you!"

"No no n-"

"It'll be completely safe, we will of course cover your back and intervene if there'll be any trouble."

"Exactly, if so, just whistle twice like a long-eared owl", said Fili, giving me such a sturdy push that I almost fell over. Ossified I looked at the fire.

"Twice like a long-eard-... Are you two sure that-", I murmured and when I turned around the two disappeared without a trace.

"Oh great."  
Anxious to remain silent and undetected, I crept to the campfire. I was able to listen to the trolls' conversations well and heard their miserable enunciation. I looked around long and accurately, discovered the four horses standing in a small wood stall next to the fire pit and crept slowly towards them. In the course of the conversation I learned the names of the three trolls, they were William, Bert and Tom. _Who gave them those names? It was without a doubt impossible for them to come to a relatively ambitious name like 'William',_ I thought and laid a finger on a thick knot attached to the wooden gate. Then my eyes catched something silvery shining it turned out to be an oversized carving knife hung on the belt of a troll. I didn't know what name this troll was carrying, because all three looked exactly the same. _Even in this situation Gandalf would enlighten me about my impoliteness and non-existent hospitality._  
I crept towards him but immediately turned back when he scratched his lower back. Cautiously I crept down to him and placed myself on tiptoes to be able to pull the knife off his belt. Abruptly a huge fist closed around me and in the next moment I was lovely sneezed on and got the full load of slime on my clothes and my face. I almost vomited of disgust but held it back when the fear crawled in my fingertips.

"Oh, look what slipped out of your schnoz!", said one of the trolls.

"Can you eat it?", asked the other one excitedly.  
"There's no flesh on it, maybe one little bite and it's gone." The troll in front of me eyed me strangely.

"What are you? A too big squirrel?"  
My heart knocked strongly against my chest and my pulse rose to my throat.

"I-I'm a master-er-hobbit", I said trembling.

"A master hobbit? Never heard that before. It's just trying to stop us from eating it!", said the one troll again.

"No matter what it is, it's disgusting how it moves", thought the other troll in front of me and dropped me disgusted. I used the chance and ran like a madman but was immediately grabbed by my feet and lifted by the next one.

"Don't run away, where are you going? Is there any more of your kind?", he asked and looked around.

"No, it's just me! There's no one else here!"

"He's lying. Of course there are more of him here, we just have to get it out of him. Hold his toes over the fire and make him talk!", he said delightedly.  
Then Kili suddenly jumped out of a bush and hit one troll with his sword on the leg, so that he howled loudly and held his foot. Kili rolled out elegantly and aimed at the trolls with his sword raised.

"Let him down!", he hollered tumultuous.

"What do you want?" Kili stared at him full of hate.

"I said: Let. Him. Down."  
The troll winded up and threw me in a high loop exactly on Kili; I let a surprised shout sound and slammed right against him. He was pushed by the momentum to the ground but tried to catch me more or less, when a unified battle call resonated and I saw the other dwarves jumping past us, Thorin first. _Even though he doesn't wear a shiny iron armor, this is quite close to my pictorial imagination,_ I thought and peered hard at him.

"Come on Bilbo, stop dreaming!", shouted Kili and bobbed up to try his sword on the trolls the next moment. _I didn't dream_ , I thought and noticed the heat on my cheeks.  
While the fighting dwarves kept the trolls in check, I sneaked to the ponies and grabbed the knife that had fallen to the ground. I quickly cut through the knot and let the ponies run out without paying attention at my surroundings. When I turned around it was already too late and a huge fist grabbed me again. My heartbeat speeded up and I was terribly scared.  
Three more hands followed, they grabbed my arms and legs and pulled them. My body was frozen and waited for the following pain, but nothing happened.

"Bilbo!", yelled Kili and wanted to run towards me, but Thorin grabbed him by the shoulder.

"No!", he shouted, pulling him back.  
The troll on my right threatened with blustered voice:

"Put your arms down or we'll tear his out!" Irregular breathing and with panicked eyes I stared at the dwarves. My gaze slipped to Thorin and my heart throbbed violently against my breast. He stared at me, his facial expression was indefinable and he hesitated.

He hesitated if he shouldn't make this measly sacrifice and thus save all his dwarves. I couldn't help myself and looked at him pleadingly in panic. _Please don't let me get killed. Please let me live and go back to Bag End. Please. I'm your master burglar. You all need me..._  
His profounding gaze made me doubt. _He's going to_   _lift his sword immediately, cut down the troll's throats and I will die pitifully in my torned body parts._ I felt queasy.  
Slowly I counted the seconds 'til it was ready but it did not come to that.  
Thorin stared deeply into my eyes and thrusted furious the sword into the ground. The other dwarves plunked their weapons down without hesitation and looked at the trolls in a defiant way. The firm grips around my body parts loosened, but I still drangled in the air.

"Wise decision. Pack them in bags!"

 


	7. Rough Whisper

Cooped up and packed in potato sacks we sat around next to the campfire while watching the other dwarved slowly roasting. More than half of us were tied to a tree and hung over the campfire. The seething fire shone in their eyes while one of the trolls pulled the tree round evenly. I was looking for an escape plan and was able to get out of the sack more or less.  
_Trolls. How can I best defeat them? I've read a lot of them... They don't bear direct sunlight and solidify to stone. I just have to temporize with them long enough for the sun to peep out behind the rocks._

"We should sit down on the dwarves and mabufacture them into jelly!", bawled one of the trolls, looking at us grimly.

"Nah, we cut them all into little pieces and throw them in a big pot!",  grumbled another one. The one, in my view most 'civilized' troll of the three said furious:

"No! We do it the way we made out a few minutes ago!"  
I looked at the other dwarves, they seemed way too upset to act so I nervously braced myself and shouted:

"I would advise you not to! Do you really consider eating those... _dwarves_  without any spices and side dishes? I'd definitely recommend you against that."  
The trolls looked at me and behind me there was an angrily murmur of the dwarves. _Please don't unravel my way of proceeding_ , I hoped secretly.

"Yeh?", the most 'civilized' troll, who I now simply called William, went into it impatient.

"Well, the secret in cooking dwarves is... um... well it's... eh... ", I cogitated and became more nervous.

"E-erm..."

"Yes?"

"The secret is ... uh..." Nothing made sense to me and my heart was knocking strongly against my chest with nervousness. I was sure the dwarves could hear it.

"Say it!"

"It's, um... it's to-... " My gaze went over the dwarves and leered to Thorin, who gave me a destroying look. I quickly looked away again.

"To... skin them first!", I finally said out loud and was glad about my idea. _Strange that I have to think of skinning when looking at Thorin..._  
The dwarves protested loudly and tried to free themselves out of the potato bags in vain. They accused me of threats and measly insults that I put off tiredly. I suddenly discovered a shadow next to the rising sun and a grey pointed hat loomed up behind the rock. I was surrounded by a comforting certitude and gained new self-confidence.  
Immediately, Bombur was grabbed by one of the trolls and hurled in the air.

"I don't want to wait that long! Let's taste them while they're still fresh and raw! This one looks like a very promising bite...", bellowed the troll, shaking Bombur in the air who's face ran green. I had to act quickly although I wished to abscond and run to Gandalf instead.

"Oh, eh... I wouldn't take _him_! He's.. um, infested! Yes, well, worms and other nasty parasites are piling in his intestines!"

"Ew, I don't want him", said the troll disgusted and threw Bombur on the other dwarfs who groaned in pain. _As I said, this can also be interpreted differently..._ , shot in my mind and I swallowed confused.  
I quickly continued speaking:

"To be honest with you, that also applies to the other dwarves. All of them are filled with worms from top to bottom, if I was you I wouldn't take that risk!"  
Almost all of the dwarves roared at me and claimed discreetly the opposite. I shook my head slightly and pressed hopelessly my lips together. But one of the dwarves seemed to recognize my pattern and it was no less than the future king under the mountain.  
He looked at me and gave the dwarf next to him a painful kick. Kili hissed and understood my thoughts miraculously. Now he affirmed my accusations and the other dwarves joined in even louder.  
The troll generously titled by me as William grunted aloud and clamoured:

"Don't believe them, they just try to stop us from eating! Throw some more wood into the fire and we can finally crush them!"  
I recognized again the grey pointed hat and Gandalf who now emerged behind the rock and demonstratively held up his wooden stick. The trolls followed our gaze and looked dumb at Gandalf.

"Who is that?, asked one.

"Can we eat him too?"  
Gandalf took a deep breath and thundered with roaring voice:

"The day shall meet you and make you wretched trolls to stone!" and he thrust the stick with such a force and strength upon the rock that he broke in the midst of it. The glaring sun rays bite us in the eyes and I exhaled relieved.

 

 

 

After we had freed ourselves from the potato sacks and collected them briefly, Gandalf and Thorin were involved in a vivified conversation. I listened attentively but tried not to show it too obvious.

"Since when settle stone trolls so close to our borders? Anyway, where have you been? You shouldn't just simply have ridden away", said Thorin in his deep intimidating voice.

"I had other tasks to finish; taking a look ahead. Luckily, I was still in the right place at the right time", thought Gandalf. Thorin's look darkened.

"And for what reason did you decide to come back?", he folded his arms and Gandalf turned around smugly smiling.

"The look behind." Thorin just nodded indifferently and replied nothing. Gandalf looked at me. _Will he stop me now for my absolutely thorough behavior or is he only looking at me because I am simply an innocent beauty?_ I grinned a bit.

"You dwarves can really be thankful that you have such a cunning master burglar under your sort! I wouldn't have wondered if he'd come back on _your_  spirits."  
Thorin disgruntled shook his head.

"Because of your _sublime_ hobbit we have only come into this shameful situation. If he hadn't been so careless and unfaced, it wouldn't have come that far." I swallowed heavy and looked mutely to the ground. I felt Gandalf's resting eyes on me.

" _My_ Hobbit has a name and it's Bilbo! _He_ was also casually the one who kept a cool head in this situation and recalled that trolls would become stone in sunlight! And _none_ of you have come to mind. Do not judge Bilbo by his vein or impoliteness,-" _T_ _here it comes_...,

"in him there is _much_ more than you all think and much more than he ever dared to dream." I looked up and smiled minimally. Gandalf smiled sincerely back. A contemptuous snort sounded and Thorin stepped through our eye contact.

"The trolls had to protect themselves at day from the sun's rays. There's a cave nearby", he said dryly and ordered the dwarves harshly to look for the entrance. When I was slowly realizing what just happened again, the fatigue crept into my weak limbs. Until now I had no opportunity to close an eye and felt drained and exhausted. I wanted to sit down because I feared that my shaky legs would collapse, but was stopped by a strong big hand on my arm. I inhaled startled.

"Baggins, you can rest after we found the troll cave", whispered a deep, harsh voice in my ear. I shuddered and my hackles raised.

"Uh, I didn't want to sit at all", I meant and tried to bob up again. The grasp around my arm intensified and I was gently pulled back on my feet.

"Thanks", I murmured hastily.  
Thorin looked at me insistently and loosened his hand from my arm. I bit nervous on my lip and immediately stopped it when I noticed that it could be interpreted very differently.

"Well, eh... I-I", I stuttered embarrassedly touched and felt my cheeks turn red. I couldn't keep my eyes off him. His face was too intriguing. _And those deep blue eyes... All right, I quit._

"Yes?", he asked harshly whispering. Under his intimate gaze I softened and just wanted to get away from his... _mastery_. I was thinking of an escape plan, but none of them seemed promising. My cheeks went unbearably hot and for a long time I could no longer suppress the ever-increasing nervousness in me. Suddenly a shout sounded.

"Thorin! It's here!"  
Thorin turned around briefly, then looked at me again with a grave glance and walked away; in the direction from where the shout came. I watched him long after, looked at his long dark coat in the wind and followed him after some hesitation. _I can sleep after that, I can sleep after that, I can finally sleep after that,_ I said to myself. The dwarves and Gandalf stood in front of the entrance of an eerie cave which couldn't really be compared to a cuddly hobbit hole. _Especially not with mine. Sigh. I'd like to be there now. So far I like the company very much._ As we walked in one by one, we gasped of the stench of the troll cave and breathed steamed in the strook of our arms. The air was mixed with rotted meat, nasty dryness and dirty scraps of cloth spread on the ground which probably belonged to some men or even... halflings? _Terrible_. My eyes gazed between all the debris shiny gold coins and shimmering gems. Of course the dwarves hadn't escaped those treasures, so Ori, Nori and Dori buried some of them by the entrance of the cave. The others were only able to shake their heads silently and continued taking a closer look at the troll cave.  
Thorin was very impressed by some big metal, which mysteriously stood behind a rock. He pulled it out and seized the beautiful hilt decorated with ornate fonts. It was an exceptionally long sword with a deadly deep point. _If someone was going to put that on my neck I'd have died of a heart attack before they could deliberately hurt me. Just the sight is enough for me and the idea of it seems... painful. Ouch._

"This here... are elven blades. Made in the forges of Rivendell. A better weapon you can not wish", said Gandalf wisely. Thorins glance darkened and he let the weapon sink.

"I take nothing from the elves", he said darkly. Gandalf seemed despondent.

"Thorin, we are unprotected and in all respects, outnumbered. Accept this blow of destiny and we can continue our journey."  
Thorin just grumbled and swung the sword on his back. It shone sharply and bloodthirsty at me.  
I couldn't take the oppressive air and the biting stench of rotten food anymore and left the gloomy cave. Outside I breathed deeply and sat down near the entrance. I leaned on the moss-covered rock behind me and closed my eyes for a moment.  
A short blink of an eye later, the dwarves and Gandalf emerged from the cave and wore shimmering swords and axes on their backs. Gandalf joined me and sat down next to me. _As long as I don't have to help him getting up later..._ , I thought. He looked at me attentively and brought out something small behind his back.

"For you, Bilbo."  
I stared at him incomprehensiblely, then I looked at the swing-fully decorated sword sheath.

"No, Gandalf... I don't want to let it come that far in the first place", I said and felt bad, because the dangers out there seemed to be worse than thought.

"Bilbo, please. I don't want to leave you unprotected, I can't forgive myself then. Remember, it is far more important keeping a life than taking one", he said with a teaching voice

"You're right, magician", I said dryly and took the small sword. I grabbed the hilt and pulled it devoutly out of the sheath. The sword shone at me metallic and deadly and I swallowed uncertain. _Will I ever have to use this?_ Gandalf surveyed me.

"It glows bluish in the presence of orcs and similar enemies nearby. I really hope you'll never have to use it", he spoke to me. With a dry throat I nodded uncertain. I gently pushed the sword back into it and attached it on my belt provisionally. _I hope so too, Gandalf..._  
We sat in silence and in our own thoughts deepened next to each other, when Thorin's imperious voice broke the silence and made me shudder.

"We'll camp here for a few hours and recover from the eventful night. Be careful and don't attract too much attention; we want to stay undetected. I'll take the first guard, followed by Dwalin. Rest enough so we can continue our journey soon." Dwalin really didn't like it, especially since Thorin's face seemed extremely pale, and he put on a worried face.

"Thorin, I can undertake the whole guard as well, you should take your sleep", he said, folding his arms. Thorin shook his head resolutely and turned away while he faltered a little. _He seems pretty battered. The king should rest, he has every right to it, if not the only right. I like to offer him my place here, as long as I can stay close to him and watch him closely,_ my mind played up. I was only aware of my obvious staring when the dwarves looked at me asking, including Thorin who put on a serious face. _What a feast for the eyes..._ I quickly closed my mouth.

"E-em, can I sleep now?", I asked and as always, the throbbing heat went into my cheeks. Kili and Fili giggled quietly. I would have preferred to silence them with my fist for this.

"Yes", said Dwalin.  
I just nodded briefly and turned away from them, hoping they'd deal with other things and they did as well. I laid down on the side but wasn't able to close an eye, it was far too uncomfortable for me. After some time Gandalf got up groaning and whispered:

"Rest, Bilbo." And went to the other dwarves, who have settled down a bit secluded from me. Now I felt really alone, even though I put so much emphasis on my loneliness. Fili and Kili went in my direction and sat down to me while they were whispering quietly and incomprehensible about something. With time the fatigue crept into my limbs again and I closed my eyes. For a long time a voice sounded in my ear which made me shiver and followed me in my dream.  
It was arguably undeniable who this voice belonged to.  
_But why did it sound so close?_


	8. Pleasing

* * *

I was awakened by a slight shaking on my shoulder.

"Bilbo, we need to keep going."  
Unrecovered, I opened my eyes and blinked towards bright rays of sunshine. My head was spinning and my sight intensified slowly. Fili sat in front of me and quietly rolled his sleeping bag together, while Kili was leaning with his back on a rock yawning. I sat down cautiously and smoothed my crumpled shirt.

"Kili, how long-...", I whispered and was interrupted at the same time by him.

"Less than four hours, we can't stay here any longer, otherwise we won't be able to make our imminent march before sunset. Were you at least able to get some rest?" I nodded.  
We packed our sleeping bags in the backpacks and then sat silently next to each other. My thoughts revolved around the concern of food and then my stomach growled cheerfully. The other dwarves shouldered their newly-won weapons and hedged a plan for our trek. Each one seemed unrested and as hunger gnawed to all of us, they wasted energy spitting at each other.

"Where do you think should we go?", Thorin asked with a snarl. His clear-cut- _I can admit that, right?_ -face seemed even paler than in the early morning and he trembled very lightly, but that didn't seem to disturb the others. Unlike me, because I overthought it and had to find out what the king under the mountain was missing. _And how I can cheer him up,_ I put behind to my astonishment.  
Suddenly a dull noise sounded in our near and it seemed like a heavy sliding of wood over the leafy forest floor. The dwarves and Gandalf looked resigned and outflung their weapons which were twinkling combatively in the sun. Tensed, I pulled out my sword and stared at it, in fear it would color bluish. The sliding noise came closer and was now immediately above us when it came to stand in a bumpy leap in front of us, and we at the same time raised our swords. In front of us stood a little elderly man on a wooden sled, in front of which a dozen hares were stretched. He wore a brown tattered hat, a dark brown robe and wide boots. In his right hand he held a short wooden stick.

"Radagast!", said Gandalf chuffed and went to the confused looking man.

"Gandalf", he only said. Gandalf turned to us.

"This is Radagast the Brown, the fifth of our wizard set. I told you of him on yesterday's day of our trip." _He did?_ , I thought but immediately put my sword back. Gandalf turned to Radagast again who scratched his forehead. I noticed the dried liquid on his cheek. _Disgusting what he's having stuck on his face. Never heard of a mirror before? Gag. Old men just don't notice anything anymore._

"Radagast, what brings you to us? Bad news?" Radagast looked at him with frowning.

"Indeed, but... I just can't recall. It's on the tip of my tongue! Oh... it seems to me that this is not so erroneous-..." I had to nod sarcastically approving. _He does speak quite uplifted with his squeaky voice. Still sympathetic._ At once, Radagast stretched out his tongue and Gandalf lifted his hand in his direction. I wanted to ask horrified what they had now for sick games in sense as Gandalf podded something insect-like from Radagast's tongue. It was a waking stick. I looked with a _what the hell_ -glance around and Fili and Kili replied my look no less repulsed. Gandalf surveyed Radagast with a dubious look. Then his gaze wandered over us and he gave Radagast a nod to follow him. _What was so important that he wanted to withhold it from the dwarves and me?_ My gaze slipped to Thorin and he seemed to think the same but remained silent and looked at the two only skeptically. The two wizards diverged from us, but I had to know Radagast's concerns, so I snuck carefully afterwards. _Pardon my impoliteness Gandalf_ , I thought smirking.

"The greenwood is sick, Gandalf. A darkness has fallen onto him. Nothing grows anymore ... at least nothing good. The air is overwhelming and cold, but the worst are the webs."

"Webs?", asked Gandalf who walked around thoughtful,

"what exactly do you mean by that?" Radagasts look was gloomy.

"Spiders, Gandalf. Giant spiders. I followed their footsteps. They come from... Dol Guldur." Gandalf turned around with a grave mien.

"Dol Guldur? But the fortress is abandoned after all..." Radagast shook his head.

"No, Gandalf. It's not." And he told him of his visit at the Dol Guldur fortress and that there'd be a necromancer. His gaze was filled with fear and it seemed as if a certain scene would run again in front of his inner eye. Gandalf eyed him thoughtfully, took out his pipe under his belt and held it out to him. He inflamed it with a short slash of his staff and Radagast took it with a shrug. He took a deep drag and seemed completely muddled.  _If only I could take a drag myself... After I have thoroughly disinfected it_. Radagast smiled tipsy and Gandalf nudged him slightly smiling, but hardened his mien again.

"So, the Necromancer... Are you really sure?" Radagast looked at him mysteriously and pulled something out of his cloak pocket. It was a coal-black sword, wrapped in a beige cloth.

"This... does not come from the world of the living." A loud howling sounded and I winced. _Oh no, please not..._

"Was- was that a wolf? Are wolves out there?", I asked with a slightly hysterical voice and looked nervously around. Bofur looked resigned as well and said:

"Wolves? Nah, that was no wolf..." Something growled aloud behind us and I first thought it was Thorin, but when I turned around I looked into the disfigured face of an oversized wolf with lurid bared teeth. I'd have screamed out loud, but that _something_ jumped up on us and tore the defenseless Dori with itself. Thorin reacted quickly and thrust his sword fitfully into the throat of the beast. While he was still busy pulling it out again, another wolf-like beast appeared behind him and Kili quickly outflung his bow. An arrow sailed exactly into the animal's chest and it fell to the ground. It tried to snatch Thorin when Dwalin chucked his axe in the head of the thing. Thorin managed to pull his sword out of it's throat and dark red blood shimmered on the blade. I felt queasy and held my hand on my mouth.

"Warg scum. Means that an orcs pack can not be far away", said Thorin with vigorous voice. I trembled and asked horrified:

"Orcs pack?" But Gandalf turned angry at Thorin.

"Who have you told about your quest, apart from your companions?" Thorin elegantly threw his long curls over his shoulder and looked at Gandalf gloomily.

"No one." Gandalf seemed upset.

"Who did you tell?", he shouted louder.

"No one, I swear it!", said Thorin expressly. Gandalf seemed to believe him and didn't question it any further. _How can he even doubt the king's word?_ , I thought.

"What on Durin's day is going on?", asked Thorin emphatically.

"We are being hunted." Now Dwalin spoke too:

"We have to get out of here!" Ori, who had been searching above us, screamed horrified:

"We can't, the ponies eloped!" I breathed irregularly in and out and looked around in panic.

"I'll distract them", said Radagast quite calm. Gandalf turned his head shaking.

"These are Gundabad wargs, they will get you with confidence", he said resolutely. Radagast smiled challenging.

"And these are Rhosgobel rabbits! I want to see them try." Gandalf seemed doubtful, but nodded at him. Radagast bowed to us, jumped on the wooden sled with the rabbits on the ribbons and eagerly dashed off. I was uncomfortable and wished deep inside, nothing would happen to the bubbly magician. We waited a short moment and then followed Gandalf who was the foremost man this time. I wondered if that wouldn't scratch Thorin's ego a little, but didn't want to express it out loud, otherwise I'd ultimately still be tragically killed. We diverged from the forest and found ourselves on a wide-running meadow with yellow grass and numerous rocks.

"This way", said Gandalf quietly, leading us through a maze of sharp-edged boulders. Just in front of us, a flock of wargs and other rabble, the orcs, suddenly appeared and we quickly changed our direction.

"Stay Together", commanded Gandalf. The dwarves hesitated briefly.

"Go!", said Thorin emphatically and they moved. We ran to another rock seeking for protection and I stumbled them exhausted afterwards.

"Ori, watch out!", shouted Thorin and pulled him behind the rocks as the wargs again appeared in front of us. Gandalf instructed the other dwarves and me to move on quickly. We arrived at a sheltered niche between two rocks when we heard a growl above us. My legs shaked and I was holding my aching sides. Thorin nodded to Kili who put an arrow in and lunged out behind the rock. He seemed to have stroken the warg as he howled loudly and he shot a second arrow on its rider. The orc, however, stood up vitally alive and was only stopped by Dwalin's axe. I looked away. The orcs mob on the wargs approached us, driven by the howl of the dying warg.

"Go! Goooo!", shouted Gandalf and ran ahead, the rest of us stumbled afterwards.

"The're there!", shrieked Nori and I looked shocked in the direction in which his finger was pointing.

"This way, fast!" We ran after Gandalf but the wargs followed our footsteps. Within a few seconds we were surrounded by them and I grabbed my heart anxiously.

"Where's Gandalf?", shouted one of the dwarves and I looked around terrified.

"He left us behind!", bawled Dwalin back. I didn't want to believe him. Thorin exclaimed something in Dwarvish and raised his shimmering sword with the blood-stained blade. Although it didn't fit in the context at all and I attributed this to my fear, I had to admit that it sounded intensely  _pleasing_.

"This way, you fools!", sounded Gandalf's absolutely displeasing voice and I turned around. He was standing behind a rock and seemed to disappear in the ground. _A cave! Sure that it's a good idea? Well, at least we'll be buried under the ground at the same time we'll die. What a luxury._ We ran in his direction and jumped into the cave entrance while Thorin, Kili and Fili secured the location. After a few seconds they jumped after us and the sound of a horn sounded. We heard iron arrows piercing the air and wargs falling to the ground when an orc sailed down to us and we all went back one step. Thorin bent down to him and drew out an arrow from his neck.

"Elves", he said staggered and threw the arrow to the ground. He looked furiously to Gandalf who remained quiet.

"There's a path, do we follow it?", shouted Dwalin at us. Bofur looked at him perplexed and yelled:

"Of course we follow it!" And ran ahead. Thorin branched off and went after the remaining dwarves and I followed him.

"No problem!", said Gandalf pompous and smiling as well. I'd have liked to wipe his grin off his face with my walking cane.

 

 

  
We followed the almost never ending passage and my stomach growled continuously. I was looked at crooked but when it didn't stop rumbling, the dwarves no longer paid attention to me. I was so embarrassed that my cheeks were heating up again and I was crimson in the face. Fili started poking me in the side grinning and I absorbed some air harshly.

"What? Are you ticklish?", he asked snorting with laughter and challenging raised his hands. I dived under his arms and brought as much distance as possible between the two of us. _I'm not going to let me tickle in addition to my bawling stomach, no one would be able to stand that. And, where am I here, in the playschool? I wonder... do the dwarves even know anything like that?_ When I noticed Filis grin behind Ori's head and his playful look at me I quickly went on and suddenly bumped into someone. He growled quarrelsome:

"Look out!" A cold shiver ran over my back. _Thorin._

"Oh, e-eh, sorry", I murmured quickly and awkwardly straightened my jacket. He looked at me currishly.

"You better go back, here you're just disturbing, Baggins", he said. I swallowed hard but still walked behind him, as I didn't want to go back to Fili and his tickling hands.  _A_ _t least_ _I persuaded that myself because the real reason was right in front of me._ Tired of my own thoughts I shook my head and drove my cold hands over the heated cheeks. That seemed to be noticeable to Thorin and he looked at me.

"Tell me, Baggins, why are you always getting red in your face so quickly?", he just asked. _Of course_ I got even more red by his question and tried to hide it by coughing nervously aloud and pretending I choked on the air. But a king, especially the king of the dwarves, couldn't be fooled. Thorin _smirked_ lightly and the blood in my veins froze. His gaze hardened again, however, and he looked forward. I got terribly nervous but I had to say something about my defense.

"E-er-honestly, this is probably due to my rather immature condition. I'm just not used to such long routes, especially without my second breakfast, I think, even though I didn't even have one today." Thorin nodded briefly approving. There was a warm feeling in me. _The king nodded to me_. _I feel flattered_ , I thought and became even more unstrung.

"I'm sorry. As soon as we have left this cave, we'll take care of it", he said objectively and decisively. I nodded nervously, his deep voice sounded to my ears like a feast and made me shudder. I rubbed my forehead. In silence we ran half-beside, half-consecutively, while the first was more my fault, since Fili didn't dare tickling me near the king and I wanted to take the advantage of that for a moment.  
In my head, I went through our breaknecking flight again and remembered a certain scene. I felt quite warm and unbuttoned nervously my collar. _Now I'd rather have been walking as the last one,_ I admitted. Thorin noticed the nervous fumbling on my collar and raised an eyebrow asking. I took all my courage together. _I just have to ask, otherwise I unfortunatelly can't help myself to my regret. It's not going out of my mind and this situation can't become much worse... right?_

"Um, c-could you perhaps say something in Dwarvish?", I asked stupidly and gazed at him. As always, the blood shot in my cheeks. _I hate it. Just a simple question has been asked and my body shows all signs of nervousness. I really wonder where I'm hiding my self-confidence._  
Thorin looked at me skeptically.

"You wish to hear something in Khuzdûl?", he asked and I got weak in the knees because of one word. _Pull yourself together, Bilbo, it's just a few words in another language._  
I nodded. Thorin didn't have to think twice.

"Dar un baraz yn Bund, deng Azaghâl." He looked at me closely. I shuddered as a result of his harsh voice and bit awkwardly on my lip. It sounded even better than I expected. So... _ingratiating_. I gulped sheepish and cursed the indecent thoughts in my head. _Let's not let it come to that... What's the matter with me?_ To distract from my strange reaction I quickly asked:

"A-and what's the meaning of it?" He looked at me profoundly and I dodged his gaze nervously.  
"'You're getting red in your face, young warrior.'"


	9. (D)Rivendell

I didn't reply with anything, but my scarlet red cheeks seemed to be sufficient to answer him. He nodded confirming and looked forward again; I could briefly see the triumph flashing in his eyes. _Self-complacent dwarf... With his majestic face and the deep blue eyes that resemble a sapphire... Bilbo, bridle yourself._  
After some time of embarrassing silence, Dwalin, who has been walking as first all the time, suddenly spoke up and shouted:

"There's light in front of us! We must have found the way out." The gloom of the dwarves seemed like swept away and they hurried rashly to go faster. I was rudely jostled and pushed to the side, probably rather unintentionally, although I wasn't so sure about all of them. Some of them seem to think of me as a burden, even if they wouldn't admit that. With their shoulders I was pushed away and then had to dodge Gandalf's wooden stick with fright, which almost stabbed me in the eye. After the agitated hustle had regained, I was now at the very end of our company and looked at the dwarves indignantly afterwards. _They always venture what they want, I could freak out. Well, let's hope they start cooking as soon as we get out, maybe I'll be a little more lenient with them._  I sighed theatrically and rubbed my empty stomach. I followed the throng mute, as I discovered Fili walking next to Gandalf. _If I am quiet and unobtrusive, he certainly won't notice me._ However, as always, fate seemed to have great fun at my expense. My stomach growled loudly and I rolled my eyes. At all, it was strange that my stomach started to rumble again, because at Thorin's presence he didn't make a single muck. _Must have been because of the shock,_ I reconsidered. Of course, Fili turned around, because every single one in this cave could now allocate my stomach bawl miles away. Gandalf also turned around, but obviously wasn't too attached to me and turned away, what I answered with a shake of my head.

"Bilbo! There you are."

"Mmm", I murmured wearily. Kili grinned at me.

"Now you can't run away from me anymore, little hobbit. Seems like you hid yourself very well. But I wonder much more what you've been so animatedly talking about with Thorin", he said winking. My cheeks heated up and I answered a little too hastily:

"Nothing exciting. Only this and that." Kili's grin grew bigger and he nudged me playfully in the belly.

"Uff!", I squeaked and shoved his hand away. To my shock it tickled, but I felt uneasy.

"Fili... sorry, but I'm just not doing very well." Fili seemed anxious and slowly dropped his hands.

"Oh... no, I'm sorry, of course you're a little struck by the uproar earlier. And your stomach told us all. I could now also tolerate five bowls of Bombur's delicious carrot soup", said Fili and patted my shoulder. I nodded thankfully. It occurred to me that Kili wasn't near, where the two never showed up separately.

"Tell me, where's Kili by the way?" Fili seemed grieved, but shrugged his shoulders indifferently.

"He seems to be no longer interested in my closeness since he realized that I'm the rightful heir to our dear uncle... But I doubt that Thorin will ever bite into the grass, as tough as he is." For an inexplicable reason I had to grin a little. _That fits Thorin...the king..._

"Anyway, he doesn't seem to miss my company at first." I nodded and tried to keep the little contents of my stomach by pressing a hand on my mouth. It burned in the pit of my stomach and I hunched with pain.

"Bilbo! What's the matter?" Fili offered to hold me with his hands and helped me anxious.

"N-no idea...", I murmured, surprised by my nausea and also a little frightened. I didn't like that.

"Hey, Khazâd! Thorin!", shouted Fili and the dwarves turned to us. In some of their faces arose concern and between them Thorin emerged, who went towards us.

"What is the matter?", he asked explicitly and I got weak in my knees. _Oh oh_.

"Bilbo, he is-he's not doing very well and can no longer stand on his feet." Thorin's eyes went over me and I got nervous. _Please don't left me behind here in this dark cave... Otherwise I'll apply to Gandalf and you certainly don't want that_ , I decided. I shirked ashamed from his profounding look.

"Can you help him?", he asked Fili taking his look of me, so I breathed quietly with relief. Fili looked at me and I nodded at him minimally.

"Yes, but I could need some help if he tipped over", I started to listen attentively. _I'm not feeling that bad now. Well, actually_... Thorin nodded.

"Kili, help your brother", he ordered currishly and diverged from us again to continue the journey. To my confusion I had to admit that I thought of someone else who would be a potential helper, but of course kept it for me. Kili joined us and only nodded at his brother briefly when he cautiously grabbed my left shoulder for support.

"Is that ok, Bilbo?"  
"Mmh", I grumbled exhausted, but thankful.

 

 

  
After a further feeling of eternity, which only lasted a few minutes, we found ourselves at the exit of the cave. The sunlight shone on us and I breathed relieved tresh air in. But what I was looking at took my breath and I almost dropped my walking cane. I saw countless picturesque houses in beige colours, gigantic waterfalls with a bubbling spray and dozens of ornate pillars jutting high into the sky. Gandalf, of course, took the floor as usual and yaked at us instantaneously with historical facts, but I just whispered fascinated:

"Rivendell..."  
The other dwarves, just like me, were stunned at first, but their looks darkened again. The leader of our company, Thorin, seemed to be extremely embittered and turned to Gandalf.

"This was your plan and inner intention all along, right? To lead us into the halls of the enemy?", he said indignantly.

"There are no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only enemies that hide here are the ones we create ourselves", said Gandalf smugly, but seemed a little uncertain.

"You think the elves will agree on our mission? They'll try to stop us from doing so."

"Of course they will, but we have questions that they know to answer. If we want to be successful, we must rebuke them with tact and respect. And a handful of charm, which is why you let me speak." _Gandalf should be more charming than the king under the mountain? I have no words._ Thorin didn't respond to this and turned and branched off. The throng of dwarves began to move and followed the long stony and embellished bridge that led into the heart of the valley. I stared at the sumptuous houses and pillars, the rushing brooks and colourfully shining flowers; I couldn't look myself fill. We found ourselves at the end of the bridge on a rounded square and from there I had a great view of the waterfalls. My ears listened to the noise and I closed my eyes for a short moment to make it sound in my ears. But I had to admit, there was far more beautiful than the waterfalls to hear and I rubbed my forehead confused.

"Mithrandil." I turned around and discovered a large figure with long straight hair, sharpened ears and a kind of diadem on its head. It was an elf. He wore a long greenish robe and has spread his arms invitingly. I stared at him, for I had never seen an elf before and heard a faint whisper beside me. I leered to the right.

"We use the bathroom and then we leave." It was Thorin who spoke to Dwalin. I had to grin. _I'd have wondered if the dwarven king wouldn't have any sense of humour._

"Ah, Lindir!", said Gandalf delighted. The elf named Lindir bowed slightly and responded something in Elvish, so that the dwarves and I didn't understand a single word. _Grotty... why do we even have an unified language if it's not used?_ , I thought

"I wish to speak to Lord Elrond", demanded Gandalf quietly.

"My Lord Elrond is not present." Gandalf asked thoughtfully:

"Not present? Where is he?"  
The deep noise of a horn tore up the peaceful silence and I heard the loud clacking of hooves on stone. The dwarves outflung their swords and axes as they looked at the guards of the elves. The elves rode on noble horses and held lances and swords in their hands, ready to wield them deadly through the air.  
Thorin reacted quickly and gave the embattled dwarves with his taking voice commands in Khuzdûl. As my knees weakened by his words, I was grabbed by my backpack and dragged into the middle of the dwarves who stood in a circle around me _. I admire your commitment, but do you have to show so obviously that I'm almost unable to fight?,_ shot me through my mind. The elves rode ominously towards us and circled us eyeing, but didn't took out their weapons to my relief. The guards splitted up and from the centre appeared an elf in dark combat armor on a black steed, who was wearing a smile on his lips.

"Gandalf!", he said friendly.

"Lord Elrond", greeted Gandalf him back and slapped up an honest smile. He bowed slightly in front of him and the two exchanged short words in Elvish. Lord Elrond descended from his horse and went to Gandalf, who he briefly pulled close as a greeting.

"Srange for orcs, coming so close to our borders. Something or rather someone", he pressed Lindir the sword in his hand,

"probably must have lured them here." Gandalf nodded knowing and smiled further.

"Ah, that might have been us." He nodded to the dwarves and me. They lowered their weapons and looked waiting at their king, how they should proceed now. Thorin majestically walked up to the elves, his cloak fluttered impressively in the wind and he looked coldly into their eyes. Although he was barely a head smaller than the Lord Elrond, he was far more predominant. Lord Elrond smiled at him.

"Welcome Thorin, son of Thráin." Thorin seemed unimpressed.

"I don't think we've ever come across", he said coolly.

"You have the appearance of your grandfather. I knew Thrór when he ruled over the kingdoms of the mountains."

"Indeed. Only... he never mentioned you", said Thorin reprehensible and quietly threw his long curls over his shoulder. Lord Elrond looked right into his eyes and seemed to think briefly, then he said something in Elvish. Thorin replied nothing to it and Gandalf smiled broadly.

"What did he just say? Was that an insult?!", shouted Gloin incensed and tried to push himself out of the row of the other dwarves.

"No, Master Gloin, he's inviting you to dinner." Gloin paused and the dwarves whispered briefly together, while I pinched a laugh the whole time. _This is worth gold..._

,,Well... we accept the invitation then", said Gloin and coughed nervously. Lord Elrond nodded and led us to a huge marbled stone staircase. We followed him through further paths and squares with ornate pillars until he stopped in front of a large building. It had a white-beige base color; the pillars, which were attached to the house, were made of light wood and the shutters shimmered golden in the sun. It was an idyllic building.

"Here", said Lord Elrond pointing at the House,

"You can drop your gear and later spend the night in the beds provided. You should first recover from your journey and by the next hour, Lindir will accompany you to supper." The dwarves grumbled as an answer and I had to grin. We entered the building and found ourselves in a hallway occupied with granite stones. On both sides were three doors each with noble brass frames and the view straight ahead revealed us the beautiful view of a huge fountain through a window. I marveled and stood still to stare at the well.

"Mind out Bilbo, naked elves will come out of the water", said Kili, playfully thrusting against my shoulder. I just grinned stupid.

"What room do you refer to?", I asked. Kili looked around briefly.

"I think we'll take the very back left. There we have a little rest from the others." I nodded and followed him.

"And what exactly does _we_ mean..?", I asked. Kili opened the door carefully. The room in front of us consisted of four brass beds, an artful dresser of light wood, two large chairs with golden decorations and a small table. Kili settled on the nearest bed.

" _We_ means me, Fili, you and Thorin." I listened attentively.

"Thorin?", panted. Kili grinned broadly.

"Yes, our uncle, unless we drive him successfully away by being nasty, then we have the entire room only for us three!" I laughed nervously and asked hesitantly:

"Wouldn't... wouldn't he prefer to stay at Dwalin and Balin's?" Kili frowned.

"Why should he? He already spends too little time with his nephews", said Kili slightly bitter.

"Oh... I'm sorry", I murmured and would like to know more about it, but didn't dare to ask. I went to the bed near the window, which stood in front of Kili's bed and put my backpack down next to the bed posts. Exhausted, I sat down on the soft mattress and once again lived the adventurous day. _Whether I like adventurous shouldn't be thought of now._


	10. A Feast

A knock on the door resonated and I lifted myself up. _When did I drop off, please?_

"Bilbo, Kili? Lindir is here", Fili's muffled voice sounded through the door and footsteps receded from us. I sat up and rubbed my forehead. Careful not to see any black dots flashing in front of my eyes, I raised up from the down feathered bed. Kili was already standing at the door and grinned at me.

"What?", I nagged and stroke my jacket smooth.

"Well, I have to admit, you look very dainty when you're dreaming", he grimaced archly.

" _Dainty_? I beg you! Have a little more decency", I said irritated. Kili just laughed and cheerfully opened the brass door while I followed him with an enduring face. The dwarves, Gandalf and Lindir stood in front of the building and seemed to have waited for us.

"Complete? Then please follow me." Lindir led us to a small clearing. There were two long round tables; one of them stood slightly elevated on a huge marble stone slab. The dark wood tables were abundantly covered with full bowls, soup kettles and small plates. The clearing offered a breathtaking view of whole Rivendell and I decided to grab me the best place for it. The dwarves noticed the height of the other table and quickly steered towards the other. _The increased round table is most likely intended for the slightly higher, such as Gandalf or Lord Elrond... and Thorin. It'd be advisable if I joined the other dwarves,_ I thought. I went to the back of the lowered table, where I also had the most beautiful view of the home of the elves, but it was snatched by Gloin. I faltered and didn't want to shoo him away, especially since I had to reckon with a broken nose, so I turned around quickly. All the chairs with beautiful views were occupied. I wished to swear and chuck something to the ground, but could keep my frustrations under control. _Calmly, Bilbo, the dwarves are in superior number anyway; so you shouldn't start arguing._ My gaze slipped to the other table. I wasn't sure if someone like me, a little hobbit from the indefinitely distant shire, could sit at the table of the elves, wizards and kings. Undecided, I stood around and buttoned my wine-red jacket.

"Bilbo, come over here!" I lifted my gaze and noticed Balin, who beckoned me over himself. I went up to him and sat down.

"Thanks."

"Not need to thank me!", said Balin sincerely. Without waiting for the salutation of the Lord Elrond, the dwarves lifted their filled glasses in the sky and drank eagerly. They helped themselves to the food, but were very grieved.

"Just one bite", said Dori endeavored cheering.

"I don't like green food", said Ori, putting back the salad leaf into the bowl. Dwalin rummaged the salad bowls and asked stunned:

"Where's the meat?" I commented it with an eye roll and helped myself to the bowls. It was a really delicious feast and the food seemed to taste good for my belly, for he remained silent.

"Got any chips?", asked Ori and looked around searching. While I ate, I noticed Kili's furtive glances at the elven maidens and his steady wink in their direction. I wanted to groan annoyed but rather broke it off. Dwalin noticed it as well and looked deadly at Kili. Kili's grin froze.  
"I have to say, I don't like these elven mesdames. Too thin. With their high cheekbones and pale skin... and too little hair for me. While that one over there doesn't look too outlandish", he tried to make excuses and nodded to a male elf. I stifled a laugh.

"That's no elven maiden", said Dwalin unapologetic. Kili froze and his face turned chalky-white while the other dwarved bursted into laughter. Dwalin winked at him. I grinned with them, but didn't want to hurt Kili and drank something from my glass quickly.

"Very funny..."  
The elves agreed on a quiet melody and I was able to listen to the neighbor's table, even though I was probably not allowed to do so. Lord Elrond told Gandalf and Thorin the names and backgrounds of the swords from the troll cave. I looked down at me and pulled out the sword that was applicable to my size out of the sheathing. I looked at it thoughtful.

"I wouldn't worry about that. Swords are named after their great deeds in battles", said Balin, smiling at me.

"What do you think of mine? Do you think it has never... seen battles?", I asked interested.

"Well, I'm not even sure if this is a sword. Looks more like a letter opener." I swallowed and shoved the sword again under the table. _Did he just insult me, the sword, or both of us because of our size? I feel dishonoured..._ I leered to the other table again and saw Thorin coolly apologizing and getting up from his chair. I stared at a place that I shouldn't have looked at and turned myself quickly ashamed away. But my eyes were steadily resting on the king. He walked past us impassive and leaned upon the long granite stone wall apart from the music and us. There at the wall had to be the most beautiful view of whole Rivendell, which Thorin seemed to take advantage of briefly. His braided hair blew in the warm breeze and the late evening sun radiated his royal silhouette. I quickly closed my mouth and preferred having another glass. The dwarves seemed to slowly have had enough of the atmospheric melody and complained quietly mumbling about it when Bofur suddenly jumped from his chair and hopped on the table. Of course he threw all the bowls from the table, which didn't disturb him any further and he began to sing a song with a loud voice. The dwarves cheerfully joined in and the elves dropped their instruments frowning. I didn't know the song, but liked the vigour of the dwarves and grinned at them. _Did I drink too much of this delicious red liquid in my glass?_ , I wondered, because actually I was always against loud festivities. I looked at Thorin again, who calmly moved his feet in tact and occasionally took a sip from his chalice. _Oh, he is so sovereign and majestic... If only I could go to him..,_ I purred in thoughts. Confused, I rubbed myself over the heated forehead. _I should go to bed._ Now the dwarves started throwing leftovers of food at eatch other and thus everyone in their vicinity, so I quickly got up and left the table.

"Bilbo, wait, I don't want to be pelted too!", shouted Fili and followed me swiftly. I briefly looked to the other round of the table to see Lord Elrond's reaction to it, but it was empty. I looked around searching.

"Where are Gandalf and Lord Elrond?" Kili followed my gaze.

"There!", he said, pointing at a stony archway, where a grey long robe vanished behind. _Where's Gandalf going?_ We followed them as the late evening dawned slowly and the red-shining sun appeared low in the dark sky. We saw Gandalf again in a large hall paved with dark stones. He wasn't alone. He was with Lord Elrond, Balin and Thorin. I hid behind a pillar and wanted to pull Fili to me, but he stood there blindsided. I tried to make him aware of me with a whisper, but he was already caught.

"Fili, what are you doing here?" It was Thorin's ruling voice. Fili acted serenely and smiled coquettish.

" _I_ am here _with_ -...," he pulled me out behind the column,

"our master burglar, who should be part of any internal meeting. After all, he's an important part of our company. "I smiled embarrassed and wiped Filis hand off my shoulder.

"H-honestly I can just go away again...", I said endeavored, yet Gandalf waved off.

"No no, Fili is right, you two are an important part and should be present. Or is there anything to object to?", he asked, looking insistently at Thorin.

"As long as he can keep his mouth shut", growled the king, turning away. I felt offended and looked snorting to the ground.

"Well, Thorin, please hand me the map so I can study it." Thorin looked Lord Elrond straight in the eyes and seemed to overthink all possibilities, until he pushed his noble coat aside and took out a map. I stared at the spot where I was offered a brief look at the clothes under his cloak and quickly looked away again.

"Thorin, don't!", warned Balin, but Thorin didn't heed him and gave Lord Elrond the map. He studied it and said resigned:

"Erebor? What intentions do you have to go there?" Gandalf jumped in for Thorin before he could give an uncouth answer.

"Mostly academic." Lord Elrond looked at him and I was sure he knew about our actual intentions, but said nothing. He looked back at the map.

"These are Dwarvish moon runes that can only be read at the moon where they are written. To your fortune, today, exactly the same moon shines. Please follow me." We left the hall and he led us down a narrow stone staircase into a small cavern with an open view of the starry sky. Fascinated, I stared into the sky and was illuminated by the moon. I felt suddenly watched and looked around. Thorin looked at me. I stared back. The moonlight sparkled in his royal face and his deep blue eyes shone strongly at me. I swallowed and wanted to look elsewhere, but was captivated by his countenance.

"Well", said Lord Elrond and Thorin turned away. I looked nervous to the ground. Lord Elrond stood on a pedestal and placed the map on a plate in front of him. The moon shone on the parchment side and shining runes were created on the edge. They glittered in Thorin's eyes. Lord Elrond read the secret message aloud:

"Stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks and the setting sun with the last light of Durin's day will shine upon the keyhole." Within a few seconds I had forgotten the riddle again, but Durin's day remained in my memory.

"Durin's day?", I asked Balin quietly who stood right beside me. Gandalf turned to us.

"It's the first day of the Dwarvish calendar, after the last sun of autumn has fused with the sky of winter." I nodded interested and looked to Thorin, who had thoughtfully folded his arms.

"That's not good news. The summer is dwindling and the Durin's day will soon be ahead of us", he said gauntly.

"We still have time", Balin stated.

"Time, for what?", I asked curious.

"Time to find the entrance. We need to be in the right place at the right time. Then, and only then, the door to the mountain can be opened." Lord Elrond now uttered his thoughts aloud:

"So, this is your intention. To enter the mountain." Thorin looked at him disparagingly.

"And?" Lord Elrond seemed unimpressed.

"You are not the only ones who have turned your gaze towards the mountain." Thorin looked angrily into his eyes and pryed the map out of his hand. He passed by us with his head raised and left the cave. We followed him.

"Fili, what do you think of this whole thing?", I asked and climbed up the stone steps. Fili shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know, I have to visualize it first. Maybe I'll dream of it and learn more about it... although I wouldn't like to encounter Thorin in my dreams", said Fili thoughtfully.

"Why not?", I asked and noticed only seconds later that this sounded different than intended. Fili turned with his face to me and raised an eyebrow grinning.

"I see, you wouldn't mind?", he sneered.

"Of course I would", I said quickly and turned red around my cheeks.

"Interesting", he said, laughing quietly.

"You're a miserable liar Bilbo, but don't worry, your secret is safe with me", he grinned at me mockingly and patted me compassionately on the shoulder. I didn't like it at all.

"Hey, whatever sick you're imagining; it's not true!" Fili shook his head amused.

"Certainly." Indignantly I remained silent and passed him, what Fili commented with a knowing laughter. _He can think what he wants, I know what's going on with me... cough._ We arrived at the idyllic house, which was provided for us by the elves to stay overnight and entered. There was such a loud volume in the building that I my ears almost bursted when I went in.

"What the hel-", I wore, but Fili just dragged me to our room. To my relief only Kili was there, who was sunk in thoughts sitting on his bed and stared at the ceiling. Fili closed the door behind us and the noises were a little subdued. I steered to my bed and slumped onto it. _Hopefully I can finally sleep 'til midday sun..._ With my hands I drove languid over my face.

"Don't be afraid Bilbo, within a few minutes they all have calmed down out there", said Fili encouraging. I nodded and propped my chin on my hands. I felt miserable. I sat up straight again and pulled the jacket from my shoulders, which I put neatly over the chair beside my bed. I grabbed my backpack and rummaged it, but couldn't find my nightgown anywhere. Anyway, I wouldn't have changed clothes in front of the dwarves, that'd have been too uncomfortable for me. _And who knows what they might have thought of this pure beauty like me_ , I pondered. Perplexed I fluffed up the snow-white pillow and slipped under the blanket. Fili did the same and laid down in the bed opposite Kili, who has already drawn the blanket up to his chin. Only the small candle on the table donated light in the room and I closed my eyes exhausted. I didn't know how much time had passed when the dwarves from the other rooms became silent and probably also placed themselves in their beds. Halfway in my dream world, I noticed the slow opening of our room door and the occurrence of a dark silhouette. Gentle footsteps sounded across the room while taking off the cloak from its shoulders. The candle was carefully doused and there was absolute darkness in the room. I closed my eyes. Of course I knew who it was and my heart beat faster.


	11. Bathing Dwarves

When I woke up I was the only one in the room. I sat down slowly and looked out of the window. The glaring sun wasn't too high, so it must have been the late morning. I stretched myself extensively, got up and felt for once in a time very well rested. On the chair next to my bed was a fresh beige shirt and light brown trousers. I took both and held them up.

"Precisely cut to my size. I wonder if they stole it from the Shire", I asked myself and dressed me. With the comb from my backpack I ran through my hair, but with curls like that it was hopeless in the first place. I opened our door and leered in the hallway. No one present.

"Hm...", I murmured, strolled through the hallway and pushed the huge entrance door. I almost ran into Lindir, who stood exactly in front of it.

"Yikes!" Lindir turned around and retrogessed apologizing a step back.

"I'm sorry, Master Baggins. I waited to accompany you for breakfast." I felt flattered and also a little sublime. _No sooner are the dwarves gone and someone worries about me. I should probably avoid their nearness more often._

"Many thanks... Where are the dwarves?", I asked even though I didn't actually miss them.

"God only knows where they are... excuse me. But you probably know best how to stand them." I nodded grinning and Lindir smiled at me.

"Now, please follow me." He led me in a different direction than yesterday's and while we walked in silence, I gazed at the sumptuous wooden buildings, the tall maple trees and the numerous stony paths that crossed and snaked several times.

"You elves have it really nice here", I admitted. Lindir turned around.

"I think so too. But I'm also certain that the Shire is beautiful likewise." I smiled broadly and thought of my hobbit hole, the chimney, the rocking chair and especially my pipe. _Oh, sweet home..._

"You should come visit us, though everything will probably appear too teensy." Lindir delighted smiled at me.

"I'll will consider it." We entered a huge wooden house of light grey colour, in the interior of which was a long white stone table. At the beginning of the long table stood a kingly chair with golden decorations.

"This looks very much like the dining room of Lord Elrond", I uttered my thoughts aloud. Lindir nodded.

"Indeed, only the Lord Elrond is prematurely absent. I still hope you'll be contented... Please, sit down." I sat in the seat of the table where were a silver chalice, plates and cutlery. Lindir picked up a carafe and wanted to pour some of the red liquid in my glass, but I refused.

"Um, I think I'll first want to stay sober." Lindir laughed.

"I'm sorry, I forgot that halflings aren't that resistant to wine... We're just not used to it differently anymore", he said and poured some water in it instead. I thanked and said:

"At east I didn't do anything obscene yesterday. Could have become much worse." Lindir folded his arms behind his back and wore a grin on his lips. I grinned back in jovial mood and started my first breakfast.

"Tell me, please... who is more resistant to wine, elves or dwarves?" I asked honestly interested and bit into an apple.

"Elves of course", said Lindir immediately, adding whispering:

"But just between you and me, this Thorin seemed very _hardened_ judging the many mugs he drank." I almost swallowed and asked coughing slighty:

"How many have it been?" Lindir grinned and reflected last day briefly.

"Not less than a dozen."

"That's a lot", I said approving.

"Yes, right?", thought Lindir and grinned further. I looked at him raising an eyebrow and continued my breakfast. _Peculiar guy..._

 

 

"But I really can't eat anymore", I said raising my hands when Lindir wanted to offer me some more again.

"Very well", he said,

"then everything's now absolutely available to you. Look around a little in Rivendell and if you feel bored, come to me again. I'll be at the marbled square with the brass statues." I nodded thankfully and he walked off. I stood up from the chair and wandered through the house. A stony staircase led me upwards to a gray statue holding a kind of plate in its hands. I was too small to take a look at the item, so I stood on tiptoes and hoped no one would see me like that. There was a broken sword with a sharp silver blade on the plate. I turned away with a strange feeling and stared at a mural that showed a mummed figure caring a black sword. _Black sword... does that have anything to do with the sword Radagast has shown Gandalf?_ There was shining something golden on its hand and I looked at it. It was a ring. Whispers appeared in my head and screams of dying people fused into my thoughts. I walked away fast. Arriving outside I went over long bridges with deep views of the waterfalls below me, I gazed at many of the colourful flowers and snitched even a cherry-coloured. I climbed up stairs and came to a stop on a balcony to let my gaze wander over the beautiful Rivendell. I heard quiet steps and turned around. There stood Lord lrond who smiled at me kindly and joined me.

"Not with your companions?" His gaze went over the landscape.

"Oh, uhm... they'll miss me" I said, but of course this wasn't true. I was sure the dwarves just enjoyed the free time without my presence. I looked at Lord Elrond honestly.

"The truth is, many of them seem to doubt whether it was a good idea to take me on their journey or not." I looked back at the waterfalls and felt Elrond's gaze on me this time.

"Indeed? I have heard that hobbits are very tough." I laughed quietly and was sure that he meant it as a joke, but he looked me right in the eyes. I felt proud and asked:

"Really?" Elrond nodded.

"I have also heard that they appreciate the comforts of a home", he said, smiling. I smiled again and for the second time that day I had to think of Bag End. I sighed quietly. I remembered something that was told in the Shire and said:

"I've heard that it's not wise asking elves for advice, because they answer both with 'yes' and 'no.'" Elrond looked at me seriously and my grin froze.

"Ha!" I laughed uncertain as a grin appeared on Elrond's lips. _Lucky, otherwise I'd have been skinned alive._ I smiled embarrassingly back.

"You are welcomed to stay here if you intend to." I looked at him and he smiled at me sincerely. Pleased and thankful I smiled back. Elrond pressed my shoulder gently and walked off from the balcony with the breathtaking view of the town of the elves. I watched him long after. _And I will consider that..._  
I left the balcony and steered to the square with the statues to enquire Lindir after Fili and Kili when I heard loud laughters and jubilation. _Dwarves_. I followed the noises that led me to the house provided for our company and froze by the sight. _What. The. Hell_. There were the dwarves. But they didn't just stand there and made conversations. They were in the fountain and bathed. _Naked_. I'd have rather spared the sight because the whole thing wasn't really  _appealing_. Now I understood what Kili meant while dinner last evening that the elven maidens wouldn't be hairy enough, because the dwarves had hair _everywhere_. And when I said everywhere, then really no body region was omitted. I became quite pale in my face, because my cheeks felt deathly cold and I just wished to go back to get these horrible pictures out of my mind The problem was that I was pretty close to them and they could notice me every moment. I quickly turned around.

"Hey, Bilbo!" My body froze. It was Fili's voice. _Please just don't come nearer...,_ I hoped internally. The taps of bare feet on the granite stone floor approached.

"Don't you want to join us?", asked Fili with honest voice. I was still turning my back on him. _Did he really ask me if I could just take off my clothes and go swimming with them in the fountain? Very miserable attempt, Fili._

"No, I renounce!", I said explicitly and prayed to myself that Fili didn't come in my sight.

"Oh. That's fine", he said crestfallen and his footsteps went away again. I breathed relieved and walked off the fountain and the naked dwarves with my look to the ground. I was extremely uncomfortable and knew that these pictures would haunt me in my mind until my last days of life. _Quick, get away from here._  
Suddenly I bumped into someone and fell to the ground. I raised my eyes. It was _Thorin_. My eyes immediately drove over his body and to my relief he was dressed. But he seemed to have taking off his coat.

"Baggins, you shouldn't run around so headless", growled Thorin, looking down at me disparaging. I bobbed up to be on the same level with him, but as a hobbit you're always at least one head smaller than the others. I stared nervously at his clothes. He wore the high heavy boots with the golden buckles, a walnut-brown trousers with a wide belt and a grey shirt that was a little unbuttoned on the collar and offered me a presentable view. I swallowed. _Why is the king here? Did he want to join his dwarves...?_ I noticed his slightly wet hair and strands, which he elegantly dashed from his face. _Oh..._ In my head arose a picture that I quickly tried to forget and it burned the more in my mind. My cheeks heated up. _So he already bathed._

"What are you doing here anyway?", Thorin asked imperious. I avoided his eyes.

"Looking for Fili and Kili", I said trying to have a serious voice. Thorin looked at me captivating and noticed my evasive gaze. He looked briefly to the dwarves, then back to me.

"Do you feel uncomfortable, master burglar?", he jibed. I tried to hold his intensive gaze.

"Yes, I mind dressing revealingly in public places, especially in my presence!" Thorin looked deep into my eyes and his hands wandered slowly to the buttons of his collar. Without taking the look of me, he undid one, then the next. I felt very warm and stared at his bare chest with a slightly open mouth. _Oh damn... so muscular..._

"And", he said fetching,

"does that make you nervous?" I was silent and shut my mouth quickly so that nothing inappropriate could escape. Thorin smirked complacent. His eyes went over my body and my cheeks burned with heat. With his deep blue eyes, which repeatedly took me any breath, he stared at me.

"By the way, good to see that you're feeling better again; we can continue our urgent request early then." I just nodded and stared at the floor. _Why's he always so poignant and makes my self-assurance go flutes? Not even in front of Elrond can I hold me back... so why in front of him? What's going on with me?_  
Thorin suddenly came one step closer and bent down to my ear. I was too unaware to react in any way.

"Your reddish face suits you _much more_ than the pale after all", murmured he and I transit a cold shiver. Of course, every blood shot in my cheeks and confirmed his thoughts. He straightened up with a grin and left me there shocked. I looked after him. His tightly cut shirt gave me a wonderful view of his strong, muscle-packed arms. _Enough, Bilbo. Stop thinking like that._ I quickly turned around again. _Just get away from here._  With brisk steps I walked off the fountain with the naked dwarves and set out on my way to the marmormed plaza to meet Lindir. When I arrived there, he was delighted to see me and offered me a little tour through Rivendell. Since I didn't know anything else to do and I really wanted to learn more about the history of the elves, I agreed. During the tour I looked around attentively, but not only because of the glamorous buildings. Whenever I saw a dwarf, I went on the run and hid myself behind a pillar. If there was no pillar in the vicinity, Lindir short had to be one.

"Why are you hiding from your companions?", he asked after some time. I looked around carefully.

"Well, there have been some joyless events", I just said and peeped out behind an exterior wall.

"Uh-huh", said Lindir and didn't continue going on it. We spent the remaining day having our tour through the beautiful antique elven town and in the evening we all ate together again. I couldn't look the dwarves in their eyes, especially Fili or Thorin, so I rather had a safe distance from them and joined Lindir. _I hope they don't blame me._


	12. Quashing

After dinner I strolled around the area and found myself unconsciously back on the balcony with the beautiful view. I hadn't exchanged words with the dwarves until now and wanted to keep it that way. _What Fili must be thinking right now?_ My gaze went to the waterfalls when my eyes noticed two figures on the bridge below me. I narrowed my eyes to a slit. The figures were Gandalf and Elrond. Mysteriously they had put their heads together but as they approached me, their voices were clearly heard. Gandalf raised his voice:

"Of course I wanted to tell you about it, but at a certain time. I think you can trust me when I say I know what I'm doing." I narrowed my eyes even more to a slit and tried to make their facial expressions more perceived. Elrond seemed unconvinced.

"Do you? This dragon has slept for almost sixty years. What if your intention fails? When you awaken the beast...?", he looked earnestly to Gandalf who didn't let changed his mind.

"But if we succeed, if the dwarves succeed in reclaiming the mountain, then our defense in the east would be strengthened." _Why do we need a defense in the east? Does that have anything to do with the orcs?_

"This is a dangerous path, Gandalf", said Elrond expressly.

"It'd be equally dangerous to do nothing! The throne of the Erebor is Thorin's birthright!" I heard quiet footsteps behind me and turned around. Thorin leaned on a house façade. I stared at him for a long time, the events of this morning haunted me again in my mind and I became nervous, but Thorin didn't heed me. He had folded his arms and turned his gaze towards the ground, listening to the words of the two.

"What are you afraid of, Elrond?" Elrond stopped.

"Did you forget? An urge to madness lies in this family. His grandfather lost his mind, his father was subject to the same sickness..." I looked carefully at Thorin. He seemed grieved, but didn't react in another way to the words of Elrond.

"Can you guarantee that Thorin Oakenshield will not fall for it as well?" Thorin turned away shaking his head. _What does Elrond mean by that? What disease? And how can he dare to doubt the abilities of the dwarven king and not feel remorse? Wouldn't be surprised if he'd get behead..._

"Gandalf, these choices aren't ours. It's not our duty to rewrite the maps of Middle-earth." Gandalf was enraged and I smiled at the fact that he had his full confidence in the dwarves.

"With my help they will succeed in regaining the mountain", he said, adding unintentionally to of Elrond's doubting mien,

"and I think that only Thorin Oakenshield will answer those questions." The two tattletales walked away from us and I turned back to Thorin. He looked at me witheringly.

"What do _you_  think of this, master burglar? Don't you wish to join them or immediately stay here? The elven town seems to please you very much", he growled. _Oh, there's something else that pleases me a lot more... or rather someone,_  went through my head. I looked at him nervously.

"W-well, I signed a contract, didn't I? I won't be gone so quick despite how much you all want it." Thorin's look remained indifferent.

"Indeed. At the _end_ of the journey you'll be useful for us", he said coolly, hurting me for some reason. _So it's true, the dwarves don't care a thing what happens to me as long as I can end up serving them as the master burglar. Does Fili think of me like that as well? I assumed we were something like... well... almost friends? And I understood myself with Kili very good as well, just like with Bofur, Bombur and Balin. Does the rest of them loathe me and feels my well-being as incidental? Encouraging is something else._ Thorin's steps went away and I stared at him long after. After some time I began walking back to our accommodation and when I got there I noticed the burning lights in the windows. _What are the dwarves doing there at this hour? Normally, they only appear the earliest after sunset._ I entered the house and heard animated conversations between the dwarves and a rustling of luggage. With an uneasy feeling I opened the door to our room and detected Fili and Kili who rummaged in their travelling bags. My gaze flitted to Thorin's bed which looked almost untouched. He seemed to have taken his belongings with him, just like any traces that'd have betrayed his stay.

"We're leaving?", I asked a little surprised, because I'd have liked to spend more time in Rivendell. Kili looked up.

"Aye, Thorin wants to continue our journey as soon as possible and not to waste another day", he said, swinging his luggage over his shoulder. I nodded and stowed my own seven things in my backpack. After I finished I unbuttoned my wine-red jacket.

"Bilbo, why did you keep such a distance from us today?", asked Fili suddenly and looked at me accusingly. I didn't get a decent answer to this question without giving the actual reason for it, which is why I was awkwardly silent. Fili surveyed me and my silence.

"Was it because of our... bathing orgy?" If _it'd have been just a normal bathing orgy... why did you all have to undress in public? What the elves must have thought about that..._

"Possible?", I just said and hoped to end the conversation with that.

"Do you find nudity oppressive?", he bursted out. I tried to answer reasonably honest and thought a long time.

"W-well, we all know each other for about five days and with most of you I even get confused with their names. But to see you all... _bare_ was more than I wanted. Especially when you even expected me to undress myself as well." Kili grinned to himself, but Fili seemed unconvinced.

"So you thought we were going to judge you or what?" This is going in a completely different direction. _Why does it affect Fili so deeply?_

"Fili, I'm really honest, it's uncomfortable to _me_ , whatever the reason. I don't know about you dwarves and if you organize weekly bathing with the whole squad, but I don't do such things! It's too... personal." Now Fili grinned slightly as well and I stared at him.

"Why are you grinning now?", I asked unrestrained.

"Bilbo, you're just _uptight_." He winked at me. I was outraged but secretly couldn't say anything against his accusation.

"Uptight? I'm sorry when I don't undress in front of a group of naked dwarves and jump into the water with them! If you had been in my position, you certainly wouldn't have done that either..." Kili said laughing:

"Why not, I have nothing to hide! Unlike you, apparently." I opened my mouth.

"What should I have to hide?", I asked nervously. _All of this is really going in the wrong direction... Could we just continue our journey?_

"I don't know, you tell me", said Kili winking and walked straight up to me. I shrank back.

"What exactly... are you intending to do?", I whispered. His steady grin scared me a little.

"Checking something." My eyes widened and I jumped past him. I quickly grabbed my travelling backpack and rushed to the door, pushed it open and ran down the hallway. _What the hell_. When I opened the door to the house I almost bumped into Lindir another time. He dodged resigned back.

"I think I should keep a little distance to the door", he said. I said furiously:

"Hide me from Fili and Kili, the two of them are completely mentally deranged! They must _not_ see me." Lindir looked checking at me.

"Master Baggins, your companions Fili and Kili seemed the most decent for me", he said honest. I put him off but at the same moment the door opened. Fili and Kili, followed by the other dwarves, came out the door and saw me immediately. Kili grinned while Fili seemed unholy. _Ha! That's what you get._  The dwarves set up in unified line and I knew I had to join them now. _Oh damn, I'd prefer to stay here... But there are reasons why I'm going. Sigh._

"Well... see you, Lindir. My offer still holds at any time after our trip", I said goodbye. Lindir stared confused at me.

"You're leaving? To such an hour? But Lord Elrond is not informed!" Now I was confused as well.

"Why should he need to know?" Lindir stared at me mutely and then turned away without another word. I looked frowning after him. Excellent farewell.

"Are we complete?", the voice of Thorin, who arrived from the path towards us, sounded. He seemed to have taken a look at our way back.

"Bilbo is missing!", said Fili despondent. Thorin looked at him indifferently.

"Who seems to have found his companions in the elves, so don't be surprised if he won't show up." That struck me like a hit to the pit of my stomach and although everything in me resisted, I had to go to them. Contract is contract.

"I'm here!", I said and went up to them while I made a prentence of buttoning my jacket. Thorin just looked at me disparaging and ordered the dwarves to go. Uncertain, I made the last line and took out my walking cane. My gaze wandered over the breathtaking town. _Goodbye Rivendell and may we see again soon._

 

 

 

After several hours of climbing over sharp-edged rocks and slippery stone slabs, we went into a blustering storm. I was wet all over my body to the bones, my soaked curls hung in my face and the raindrops took me every sight. I held my hand in front of my eyes, but since I was the last one in the line I couldn't see the dwarves anymore. I dropped my hand again and instead blinked the cold raindrops out of my eyes. I _hate rain unless I find myself in my warm hobbit hole in front of the crackling chimney and with a pipe in my hand._ But this was just wishful thinking. At that moment a biting gust of wind swept me from my feet and I slammed violently on my backside.

"Ouch! Damn this fuc-" Fili popped up in front of me and handed me a hand. I took it and he pulled me up pattening my shoulder.

"You all right, Bilbo?", he asked checking.

"Yes, except for a break in the tailbone I'm feeling magnificent", I said biting my teeth together. A stabbing pain was transiting my body, but I didn't want to burden the dwarves. _Hopefully this is just a bruise._ Fili noticed my wince and looked at me anxiously.

"If it's no-", he started.

"No, it's all right." Fili nodded hesitantly and let me go on my own, but remained safe near me. As we stumbled on a hill for another eternity, the storm increased even further. Abruptly, a huge boulder flew in our direction and smashed just above our heads. I shrank back terrified and suddenly the stony ground moved under my feet and took me off balance. I looked forward and saw that the dwarves fared the same way. Another boulder slammed right in front of our feet and bursted into countless small stones.

"What the hell", I whispered.

"Get in line, the small ones to the middle!", Thorin's loud, commanding voice sounded. I was jostled and pushed so far forward until I came to a stop next to Dwalin and Bofur. _How attentive of you, great that I'm uniformly labelled as the smallest._ We carefully proceeded along the breakneck path. The rain shot me in my eyes and I slipped over the squidgy rocks. I almost fell headlong into the sharp-edged rock cliff, but Dwalin and Bofur grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me back.

"Watch it!", said Dwalin cynically. _Oh, shut up,_ I thought.

"Find shelter!", tore Thorin's voice through the air. Another rock rammed against the stone wall among us and the ground broke apart.

"Stone giants!", bawled Dwalin against the storm and I stared tremblingly at his view. _Stone... giants?_ I glimpsed a gigantic figure of brittle rocks and stones on the horizon and my heart knocked strongly against my throat. The stone giant winded up and chucked a boulder in the direction right behind us. I dodged and my body froze when I noticed another stone giant. The floor continued cracking and a gaping leap arose which dragged our unified line apart. My heart stopped when another stone giant came closer to us and was hit at its head so heavily that it smashed into dozens of pieces. The massive body fell right in our direction and my eyes widened with fear. _No! I don't want to be crushed, please not Damn it, where's the old geezer called Gandalf when you need him!_ My fingernails clutched into the rock face behind me and I pressed my body against it. I closed my eyes. A violent jolt tore me off the ground and I slipped off the cliff. With the last of my strength, my hands grabbed a sharp stone in the rock face. I was so afraid that I stopped breathing and put all my strength on clinging on and not plunging into the depths. I wanted to call for the other dwarves and somehow make them aware of me, but my body was completely frozen.

"Bilbo!" Bofur's voice sounded in blusterous thunderstorms and my fingers slipped off slowly. His head appeared above me and one of hands lost grip. My heart froze in shock and I slipped down a few inches, but my other hand grabbed a notch in the scarp. The other dwarves followed Bofur, and his and Ori's hands tried to reach me but I hung too far beneath. _It'll be my death warrant when I hit the stony rocks below me and every bone in me breaks._ _Damn, I don't want to die like this._ With all my strength I reached out my hand after them but couldn't grip anyone. It was hopeless, I thought, but then one of the dwarves jumped down to me and grabbed my hand. It was Thorin. He pulled me up and pushed me over the rock face on the stony ground. The other dwarves came to his aid and pulled me over the edge, but at that moment Thorin slipped off under my weight. Dwalin grabbed his hand and held him determined. Thorin was hanging right above the gorge and tried to pull himself up, but he slipped off over and over again. Gloin grabbed him by the other hand and together they pulled the king over the cliff edge. I pressed myself against a wall and breathed heavily under straitened chest, my heart throbbed against my neck.

"I thought we'd lose our master burglar!", yelled Bofur relieved and laughed. Thorin stood up and looked at me gloomily. I faltered and looked back. _This sinister look... Please don't skin me. O_ _r anything similar to that._

"He's been lost since he left home. He should never have come with us. There's no place for someone like him among us", he said coldly and turned away. I looked at the ground. _I know._ None of the dwarves said anything about it, they only followed their king mutely. He went behind a ledge in which a cave seemed to be.

"Secure the location." They looked around, but seemed far too exhausted to want to leave this sheltering cave for some reason. They built a camp, lit a small fire and spread out the sleeping bags. Food was passed around and I ate extensively, although I didn't feel any hunger. As we were all drained and tired, we put ourselves in our sleeping bags.  
_But I had other plans in mind._


	13. Soft Landing

After some time has passed and I was sure that all the dwarves were trapped in their dream world, I peeled myself out of my sleeping bag and rolled it quietly together. I attached it to my travelling backpack and carefully put it on. Anxious, not to arouse anyone, I slipped gently past their heads and headed to the entrance of the cave.

"Where do you think you're going?" A whispering voice sounded. I startled and grabbed my chest. I had forgotten that the dwarves always choose someone to keep guard. I rolled my eyes and looked at Bofur earnestly, who raised his eyebrow.

"Back to Rivendell." Bofur indignant stood up.

"No, no, you can't go now, you're part of our company. One of us", he whispered truly and now stood right in front of me. I shook my head.

"No, I'm not. He -Thorin- said I should never have come along and he's right. I'm not a Tuk, I'm a Baggins. I don't know what I was thinking... Shouldn't have walked out the door", I said and wanted to continue my way. Bofur grabbed my shoulder gently.

"You're homesick! I understand that", he tried encouraging me. I was furious and shoved his hand off my arm.

"No, you don't understand, none of you do, you're _dwarves_! You-you're accustomed to this life, to be on the watch all the time and belong nowhere!" At the end my voice became louder and I was amazed that I didn't wake another dwarf. Bofur seemed hurt but held my iron gaze. He let his hand sink. I didn't really want to be remembered by him this way.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to... uhm...", I tried to apologize but just couldn't think of anything likeable and the words remained insignificant in mid-air. Bofur nodded lightly and smiled sadly.

"No, you're right. We... we don't belong anywhere." His gaze wandered over the sleeping dwarves.

"Although I do believe that this isn't the real reason why you're leaving us." He looked at me again, this time his eyes seemed to pierce my thoughts.

"W-what do you mean?", I whispered. Bofur had a knowledgeable look on his face and came a little closer.

"It's because of Thorin." In the first moment, this assertion sounded absurd, but as I thought about it a longer time, I actually got stomachaches at the thought of him. _Is Bofur a kind of shrink or just a terrific observer? Hats off._

"You think that?", I asked. He nodded.

"Bilbo, he may seem very dismissive of you, but deep inside he cares about the well-being of everyone, including yours."

"I-I doubt it", I said, but shared something with Bofur whispering:

"You know, there were sometimes moments when I really thought he seems to... appreciate my presence in a way. But then in the next moment he becomes disobliging again and humiliates me. You know, after some time it's just... debilitating." Bofur looked at me pityingly and I just couldn't stand that look. _Wonderfully employed, Bilbo, now he really thinks I'm the weakest of our company. But... can I just leave the others like this? Will Fili even miss me after all?_

"I wish you every happiness of the world", said Bofur suddenly, smiling at me.

"I really do." And he patted my shoulder. Now I was really unsure, because this pitying look of him burned itself in my memory. But I had made my decision. I nodded and turned to the entrace of the cave, the storm seemed to have become clear. I took a step towards it, as Bofur asked:

"What's this?", I followed his gaze and wanted to ask why he was staring there, as I discovered a bluish glow from the sword sheath on my belt. As in trance I stared at the deep blue color and had to think of something else. I drew the sword out a few inches and my gaze wandered through the room. Then I stared into the two deep blue eyes. Thorin. My throat was laced. Our eyes met and on his facial expression I could read that he had catched our entire conversation. A shiver ran down my back. _Oh no..._ He stared again at the sword and, as the only one of us, summed up a clear thought. His eyes widened resignedly as the sand seemed to trickle under our feet into an abyss.

"Wake up!", his voice broke through the silence and he stood up quickly.

"WAKE UP!" he shouted emphatically and my cheeks heated. _Oh no, just leave your strange thoughts with you, Bilbo,_ I thought strained. The other dwarves stood up terrified, but it was too late. The ground among us divided into two parts and stone slabs pushed aside. In the free fall we fell into a black depth and I was glad that I wasn't the only one who screamed his mind to the heavens. We fell violently on a slippery stone way and slid up to an abyss. I scraped my legs and hands. The fall after that took quite a while and the anxiety climbed up my chest every second. When I bounced, all air was squeezed out of my lungs but to my relief I didn't land that hard. When I opened my eyes and saw the reason for it, I almost suffered a heart attack. I landed on Thorin. _Even better the day can no longer become,_  went through my mind and I wanted to slap me for it. With crimson cheeks I stared at his teasingly face. It was so close. He had taken abrasions of the fall and a deep cut on his nose. _Oh, this looks so manfully..._ I stared at him and when he caught my eye, my heart struck sharply and irregularly against the chest. I hoped he didn't notice. I was suddenly grabbed by my shoulder and dragged away. I followed the grey tattered arm with my eyes and found shocked out that it was an orc. The dwarves were torn apart as well and pushed through the area. The orc let me go and pushed me against Ori and Nori. More orcs came closer to us and pushed us forward with their sharp claws. In all the turmoil, I took my advantage as a hobbit and disappeared among the multitude of dwarves and orcs. I noticed Nori's shocked look, but he was dragged further. I quickly flitteded behind a rock and looked after the dwarves. They were pushed over several suspension bridges, but more I couldn't see. Anxious, I took my shining sword out and followed them tiptoeing. _Damn. I need to help them. But how?_  A ghastly orc jumped in front of my feet and I dodged back terrified. He approached me and I was brandishing my sword, but since I have never wielded one, it didn't have the effect I intended. The orc jumped at me with a dreadful roar and pressed his claws in my back. I tried shaking him off and stepped on the abyss. The orc fell from my back, but the momentum pulled me with itself and I slipped into the depth. With one side of my body I plunked on a suspension bridge and tore it into the depth, a second later I hit my head on a rock and everything in front of my eyes went black.

 

 

  
I opened my eyes. I laid pillowy on the floor and my whole body was covered with something. With my fingers I groped my surroundings. They were mushrooms. They seemed to have fended my fall off, for I wasn't feeling any pain, at least not yet. I wanted to get up but then heard a painful grunt. I looked through the mushrooms and discovered the orc who had landed just beside the mushrooms and probably had broken all possible bones. _Do orcs even have "bones"?_ , I wondered, but there appeared a figure from the dark. I slipped further under the mushrooms. The figure was pale and bone thin and its big eyes sparkled ominously in the dark.

"Yes, it's an orc, my precious!", screamed it in a scratchy beeping voice, emphasizing the last word with a hiss.

It went to the orc on all fours and took him by the legs. The orc tried to fight back, but the thing took a stone and knocked out the already lost orc with it. Something little golden fell out of its pocket, which fell heavily and silently to the ground. The figure dragged the orc away and I stood up with trembling knees. I looked up, but nothing as blackness could be seen. _I'd rather be with the dwarves now, they can at least bear the sword. And... well, there are other reasons for. I have to find a way up, or even better, out,_ I decided and raised my shining sword among the mushrooms. My feet drove me to the golden thing that turned out to be a ring. _Wait... it seems familiar to me. I saw it on the mural in Rivendell on the hand of a dark figure._ _It seems dangerous, it shouldn't get back into the hands of this creature_ , I thought and put the shiny ring in my jacket pocket. I followed the direction that thing came from and found myself at a huge pond with a tiny stony island in the middle. That's where it crouched and just hit the poor orc with a sharp stone. Dark blood shone at me and I dodged behind a rock to slap my hand before my mouth. I stared at my sword, the blue began to flicker and shone finally silver again. _He- he's dead. So the creature isn't an orc? What's it then when my sword doesn't profess it as an enemy?_ I noticed a shadow above me and jumped to the side in time, so it was right in front of me. Its huge googly eyes stared at me and I kept the sword up. It rocked his head back and forth and said:

 

"Juicy, fresh meat, my precious. But... what is it? What are you?" I didn't want to talk to it, as it gave admittedly a great fear with it, but I said:

"A hobbit. And you?" It looked at me thoughtfully.

"A hobbit? Never heard, my preciousss. As long as we can eat it... Gollum, gollum", croaked it to itself and looked at me again. _Gollum? Was that its name?_

"Be quiet!", screamed the something I now arbitrarily baptized Gollum and looked around.

"I-I didn't say anything", I said.

"We haven't talked to it, it's not supposed to talk to us!", cried Gollum and I shrank back. He whispered something and seemed to talk to himself. He had a split personality, one of them was more or less reasonable, the other was bloodthirsty and unpredictable. But I had to vanish from this place and get back to the dwarves. I took my courage in both hands and said:

"You know, Gollum, I lost my way. It'd be very kind of you if you'd just show me the way out." He turned to me and seemed to wrestle with his thoughts. He came nearer and I kept him back with the sword syringe.

"D-don't come nearer, I warn you", I said trembling. Gollum got a little away from me and talked to himself again. I lost patience and fear spread.

"I-I don't know what curious game you're playing here, but I-" Gollum interrupted me cheerful.

"Oh, games, we love games! Especially riddles." I looked closely at him. _Riddles... I'm not that miserable myself, even though I hate them. Maybe I could use my skills._

"Fine, we play a game. One says a riddle and the other has to guess. If he doesn't succeed, he loses. If _I_ win, you show me the way out." I knelt down to him and regretted it immediately.

"And if it loses, we'll eat its whole!", screamed Gollum, delighted and pranceding around. _Oh, sure. Notice, I'm here the person with the sword._

"Fair enough", I said.

 

 

 

"Go ahead, faster, ask us something! Ask us!", shrieked Gollum and I touched my temples. _Think. Think of a riddle. Wait. I should just ask him something?_

"Anything?", I asked for confirmation.

"Yes, yes!", yelled it and leaped energetically through the area. I grabbed my jacket pocket and drove my fingertips over the golden ring.

"What do I have... in my pockets?" Gollum nagged biting:

"That's not fair, ask us something else!"

"No, you told me to ask you _something_ ", I said tremblingly. Gollum wailed and jumped on a small rock.

"We have three attempts!", screeched it, holding two fingers in height. I nodded and quickly resumed my hand from my pocket.

"Hands?", yelped Gollum a moment too late, and I shook my head.

"Swords! Argh, shut up", he shrieked.

"Wrong again. Last try." Gollum ranked with himself, he jumped around on all fours and grabbed his head. He turned around.

"Ropes! Or... nothing?", he said, staring at me with his googly eyes.

"Two replies at once and both wrong", I said relieved, yet Gollum's look darkened.

"What has it... in its pockets, my preciousss? What is it?", he whispered to himself and slowly went towards me.

"You lost, now show me the the way out!", I said and swung the sword. His eyes shone on me menacingly and his mouth was warped into a torn grin. His hand wandered to his waistband and wanted to take something out of a small bag, but it reached the void. Gollum spinned around.

"What?", he screeched and searched the little bag while I cautiously walked off him.

"Where is it? Where is it, my precious?! Where?", shrieked Gollum, looking at the stony ground. I went back further and grabbed the sword stronger. _One. False. Move._ Gollum spinned around and stared at me furiously. He bared his teeth and crept towards me.

"What... has it in his pockets?" The glow in his eyes became stronger. _They were blue. But not a nice blue. Not like-... someone_. I shook my head _. I have to go back to the dwarves. I can't stay here. Not with this schizophrenic creature that seems obsessed with something. With... the ring. The ring that's in my pocket._ The fear in me grew. Gollum jumped at me screaming and I dodged him by a hair's breath. With throbbing breast I ran into a niche, holding the sword firmly and hoping to find the way out I ran over the dusty ground, jumped over smaller rocks and flitted behind rock walls, which offered me more endless paths. Behind me I heard the wailing cries of Gollum and always got a cold shiver as it seemed to approach. When I had no air to breathe, I found myself in a small niche and couldn't see any apparent passage. My throat laced and I felt big panic. _Where the hell is the way out? Where?_ I looked around quickly as the frightening shrieks approached. Then I discovered a narrow passage. I ran to it and squeezed myself through it. But as always, luck wasn't on my side. Although I missed my second breakfast several times and sometimes had to starve on our trip, I didn't seem to have become a little inch more slender. _Could also be because of my second serving tonight_ , I remembered. I was stuck and couldn't move. The beads of sweat on my forehead ran into my eyes and my body froze when I saw Gollum. On all fours he jumped at me with hate-filled mien. His eyes were shining ghastly.

"It's ours! It belongs to usssss!", he croaked and sharpened his claws. Full of fear I deeply inhaled air and squeezed myself through the opening. The shiny brass buttons on my jacket tore out of the fabric and shot Gollum in the face. I slipped through and rushed on. Suddenly I stumbled hard over a stone on the ground and was turned around in the air. Painfully I landed on my back and the ring from my pocket flew in mid-air. I reached out a hand and it slipped on my middle finger. A blink of an eye later, Gollum was crouching right in front of me and looked around. _Can't he see me?,_ I thought, staring at him. He cawed and jumped around, his googly eyes rolling in every direction. A desperate shriek came out of his throat and he ran behind a rock. I followed him cautiously, for I was sure he'd show me the way out.


	14. Blood, Toil, Sweat and Heirs

Gollum stopped abruptly and I saw myself resigned. I glimpsed the daylight between two high-soared rocks and breathed relieved. Rumbling steps approached and I recognized the dwarves right in front of me, led by... Gandalf. _Thorin certainly doesn't like that,_ I thought and smirked broadly. Gollum quickly hid behind a large stone and peeked out carefully. The dwarves ran towards the daylight and I wanted to follow them, but Gollum unconsciously blocked the passage. I wanted to call at them afterwards but then I'd have revealed Gollum my abode and I reluctantly wanted to start a battle for the ring with this thing. I closed my mouth again and considered. _Gollum needs to get out of the way. He... he's too dangerous and unpredictable. Who knows who he's going to make life difficult here in the caves. He was about to kill me with his long claws and then eat. I don't even want to know who got into his fingers before me... and ended up as a bite._ I raised my now blue-shining sword, what meant that the orcs were on the track of the dwarves and held it Gollum resolutely at his throat. Then he turned around at the exact same moment and looked in my direction full of fear. His large googly eyes shone sadly and seemed empty. I hesitated. The sword in my hand slipped from my fingers. _I couldn't hurt him, I couldn't. Who knows what happened to this poor figure and how it had come to this. And what right do I have to take this creature's life? Even if I wanted to, I couldn't._ Gollum's glance darkened suddenly and he seemed to have noticed my presence. With beating heart I took a run-up and just jumped over him, with my foot I hit him at the head. Gollum fell behind me to the ground blustering and struck around angrily. His screams rang me long and eerily in my ears while I ran after the dwarves and Gandalf in hurry. I stumbled over the ground which was covered with leaves and slipped several times; my eyes were constantly on the dwarves. There was a large distance between us which I tried to balance gasping, but the dwarves were swift. After several minutes of bare exhaustion, consisting of piercing sides and breathless panting, I approached the standing dwarves. They gathered on a small forest glade and Gandalf counted them by the fingers.

"... Fili, Kili and... Bombur. That's thirteen. Hm... Where's Bilbo?", he murmured and looked around quickly,

"where is our hobbit?" With a serious countenance he glanced at Thorin who briefly looked around and then looked at Fili and Kili, who also threw a glance over their shoulder.

"Where is our hobbit?!", shouted Gandalf upset.

"Great! Now he's gone, I thought he was with Dori!", grumbled Dwalin furiously while waving his axe.

"Don't blame me", said Dori, shaking his head.

"But where have you seen him the last time?", asked Gandalf insistently.

"I think I saw him sneaking away when we were captured", said Nori with a shrug. Gandalf went up to him.

"And what happened after that? ... Tell me!", commanded Gandalf energetically.

"I'll tell you what happened", sounded Thorin's deep voice. He passed the dwarves and looked at Gandalf gloomy.

"Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it. Since he first came out of the door, he has thought of nothing but his bed and his warm home. I'm telling you, we won't see _our_ hobbit again. He's been gone a long time." His gaze was cold and his eyes were unexpressive and awaiting on Gandalf. Fili and Kili looked at each other and then at the ground. There was a short silence. _I can't go. I've come so far and the way back is so long... I promised the dwarves something and I'll keep that in mind. Insignificant what the others... or someone... think of me. I'll continue going on this journey. I can't abandon my friends._

"No, he's not", I said and took the ring off my hand, which I let disappear in my jacket pocket. My gaze wandered carefully to Thorin and I quickly looked at Gandalf who smiled broadly. Thorin looked at me disparaging and leaned his hands on the sword.

"Bilbo Baggins, I've never been so happy to see anyone in my life again!", said Gandalf cheerfully, patting me on the shoulder. _Oh, now don't act like that._  My eyes switched to Thorin again, but Kili's voice made look somewhere else quickly.

"Bilbo, we almost gave up on you!", he said grinning at me. I only smiled lighty back, for the event in Rivendell I won't forgive him that quickly. Fili looked at me with a thoughtful look.

"How in the world did you pass the orcs?", he asked frowning. I was sure that when I'd mentioned an invisible-making ring, I'd only received laughter, which is why I answered lethargic:

"Well, I'm your master burglar, remember? Simple professional secrecy." But my fingers clasped the ring in my pocket. When I noticed it, I stopped it abruptly, but Gandalf's eyes were on me extensively. _He knows about it..._ I thought and panicked. His lips warped to a smile.

"That's how I know my hobbit and seriously, it doesn't matter; he's with us again!", he said cheerfully and wanted to devote himself again to the more important things. Thorin's deep voice interrupted him:

"It does matter, I want to know. Why... did you come back?", he looked at me extensively and his deep blue eyes pierced in my thoughts. I felt warm on my face and my throat was laced, but I couldn't resist his sovereign gaze.

"I-I, I know you doubt me, you probably always have. A-and you are right, I often think of Bag End... I miss my fireplace, my rocking chair and especially my pipe", the other dwarves laughed and the uncomfortable feeling in my chest wore off,

"that's where I belong, that's my home. And that's why I came back, because all of you, unfortunately, don't have one. It was taken. But I'll help you regain it, if I can."  
I stared Thorin right in the eyes for a long time and noticed the slight nod of him before he took his hands off the sword and interrupted my intimate staring. The other dwarves looked at me all apologizing or with a sad smile on their faces and I tried to reciprocate. Unprepared, I was attacked by Fili who went to me and wrapped his hands around me. At first it was an unfamiliar feeling, but then I hesitantly put my hands on his back.

"I'm glad you're among us again, Bilbo", said Fili smiling and loosened his hug when he noticed that I felt uncomfortable. His hands stayed on my shoulders and he looked at me.

"But you still have to tell me your secret." _Which one?_ , I thought and sighed inwardly.

"A master never reveals his way of proceeding", I said, waving and grinning mischievous. Fili's corner of his mouth went up and he grinned amused back. He took his hands off my shoulders and brought a step of distance between us. My eyes wandered to Thorin who was casted an angry gaze at me and thus aroused an icy shiver in me. _What have I done now again?_ , shot me in my mind while I stood there frozen. His gaze slipped to Fili and it seemed as if he'd love to have strangled him on the spot with his bare hands. I was unable to make tail of this.  
A long-drawn-out howl tore through the evening air and I wanted to ask Bofur what was the matter when I turned around and recognized to my shock a huge mob of wargs on the hills behind us.

"Out of the frying pan", growled Thorin and raised his sword with a sinister look on his face,

"-into the fire", finished Gandalf the proverb and grabbed his wooden staff more solidly.

"Run. RUN!" Still not fully regained breath, I ran Gandalf and the dwarves rushing behind and stumbled over smaller tree roots in the ground several times, but could rescue me again. My heart was pounding painfully against my chest as I struggled with the emerging fear. I even had a great fear of wolves, but wargs exceeded this fear to the full extent. _Amazes me that I haven't suffered a heart attack yet_ , I thought and accelerated my steps. At that moment a giant brown warg jumped over me and stopped with bared teeth in front of me. I was sessiled in shock and was only able to pull out my sword as the warg jumped on me with his jaws widely-opened. I was pressed against a tree trunk by the momentum, while the sword blade was pressed exactly between the eyes of the animal. The warg trashed around shortly and then fell lifeless to the ground, but I felt no triumph or anything in that way, for I was much too agitated and shocked.  _That's not what I wanted to happen_ _..._

"On the trees, go! All of you, climb! Bilbo, climb!", shouted Gandalf, waving around. Although I'd have preferred to run away, I needed the sword for my defense again. My hands wrapped around the hilt and I tried to pull the sword out of the creature's head, but it only moved minimally. Around me, I heard the dwarves fighting against more cruel wargs and pulled harder.

"They're coming!", I heard Thorin shouting. The loud tramp of the remaining wargs approached rapidly and I now leaned on the head of the poor beast to pull the sword out. At one go I managed pulling it out and I stumbled backwards. My look went around and I didn't see a single dwarf, not even Gandalf. My heart suffered a shock and I stared with big eyes at the mighty horde of rushing wargs. Before they could recognize me I jumped on a tree trunk next to me and pulled myself up on the branches panicking. I climbed on and on until I sat on the penultimate branch and was out of breath. My eyes went around and I noticed the dwarves sitting on the trees as well.  _Do_ _they feel undignified because of that?_ , I wondered but felt myself perfectly safe. The wargs seemed to have detected the smell of our blood and jumped up the tree trunks with their claws drawn-out. I looked up and saw Dori, who looked at me no less frightened. The tree wobbled and the old roots slowly dissolved from the ground. A warg jumped so high that he, with his fangs, clenched the bough just below me in two and I shrank back. The tree came to fall and tore the next one with it, on which other dwarves were sitting. In panic, I jumped to the next tree and clutched the trunk, but the roots of it also were torn out. The dwarves and I jumped on to the next trees until we arrived at the last tree standing on the cliff, where Gandalf was sitting on. It was hopeless. The wargs tweaked the roots and jumped at the trunk, but suddenly a burning pine cone flew in the fur of a warg, which caught fire immediately. Two more flew in and I looked up. Gandalf had set the pine cones with his wand ablaze and now threw them to the dwarves. Fili, who was sitting diagonally above me, catched the burning cone and I inflamed another. We threw them in front of the tree and created a blazing circle of fire around us, which made the wargs shrank back. But our tree bent and some tree roots tore from the ground. The tree fell over the cliff and came horizontally to stand, but the remaining roots wouldn't take long to tear. My hands grabbed a thick branch and I clawed my fingernails in it. I heard Dori screaming "Mister Gandalf!", but couldn't turn my head to him.

"Don't let go, Dori!", yelled Ori and I knew they'd soon plunge in the abyss. _No, no, no, no... please not._  
Several metres in front of us appeared a pale, oppressed orc on the back of a snow-white warg. The orc's face adorned a sanguinary and certain of victory grin. _Azog_. When I thought I couldn't feel any more anxiety, I hadn't seen _him_ yet. Everything screamed  for panic in me and it'd have been an easy thing to put an end to this and just let go. But then I noticed Thorin. He was right next to me and rose up majestically. His eyes were constantly directed on Azog and he walked slowly along the trunk with drawn sword. On his left arm emblazoned a part of a tree trunk, which was holding in front of his chest like a shield. _Oakenshield_. He rushed to the orc with his sword raised, but Azog jumped right at him. The claws of the wargs drilled deep through Thorin's coat and he fell to the ground by the momentum of the leap. Shaky, he stood up again and grasped his sword. Azog already winded up and hit him midway through his face.

"No!", screamed Balin, trying to pull himself up on the branch, but he slipped further down. The anxiety in my breast rose, but it wasn't the fear for me, but for the dwarven king. With last power I pulled myself up to the bough and put myself on the log with trembling knees. I had to watch the white warg clasping his mouth around Thorin and drilling his fangs into his body.

"THORIN, NO!", shouted Dwalin and leaped to another branch. I heard Thorin's tormented groans as the warg heaved him up and continued squeezing its jaw. Thorin lifted his sword and hit the warg's snout. He let him go howling and dashed him on a large stone near the abyss. Thorin remained lifeless on it; I could see the dark shimmering blood on his cheeks and his nose. Azog turned to the orc on his left and seemed to command him something. I knew he'd want to kill him. Thorin. The dwarven king. I couldn't let that happen. Even if there was no reason for it, he was important to me. And therefore I wanted to protect his life at all costs. " _Always remember, it is far more important keeping a life than taking one."_  Resolute, I outflang my sword and ran at the orc. I jumped against him and got him out of balance. Surprised by the fall he hesitated for a moment, but then I sat down on him and rammed the blue shining sword into his stomach. I pulled it out again and stumbled backwards towards the stone, where Thorin was laying passed out. Azog seemed astonished at the first moment, but his grin quickly returned as he looked at me. I brandished the sword. Azog and two other orcs came closer to me with their wargs threateningly. I turned the sword in my hand, but I was sure of one thing anyway: _I will not survive_.


	15. Tingling Skin

With tempestuous battle calls and drawn axes, the other dwarves rushed at the mob of orcs. For a brief moment, they succeeded in standing up to the orcs. Another orc on a brown warg looked at me murderously and jumped at me. I raised my sword and parried more or less his sword thrust. I turned around. Azog ran bestial on his white warg towards me and I brandished my blade. I hit the warg at his jaws, but he pushed me violently with his long snout away and I flew a few metres through the air. Hard, I banged on the ground right next to the big stone. I was sure my coccyx had to be broken several times and I flinched with clenched teeth back from the white warg. Azog grinned cruelly at me while I trembled with fear. I briefly looked behind me and gazed at the reposing Thorin. I hoped suppliant, he was still breathing. Otherwise, I'd never have forgiven myself. The warg on the right of Azog crept with bared teeth towards me and showed his long sharp fangs. At that moment a huge flapping of wings appeared above me and the warg was carried off his feet. Azog turned around and the next rider was dragged into the air and pushed into the abyss.

"The... eagles...", I stammered and relief warmed my body from the inside. They stood up to the orcs, threw the wargs into the glowing fire or pulled them off the cliff. A big, beautiful creature with golden brown plumage landed right above me. It stretched out its golden toes and cautiously grabbed the injured dwarven king. With an uneasy feeling I looked after the flying eagle and hoped earnest that it wasn't too late yet. There was another eagle in front of me that was dynamically hurtling towards me. I was grabbed by a claw and to my shock, dropped exactly in the air to land on the back of another eagle in the next moment.

"Thorin!", screamed Kili, who, with Fili, also sat on an eagle and looked around with a sorrowful mien when he spotted the king. I stared after him as well and my anxiety grew. _He has to be fine. Please_.

 

 

  
We flew about an hour and the fatigue crept into my limbs, but I forced myself to stay awake. The morning sun popped up behind the horizon and mixed a reddish color into the sky. The eagles began to orbit a mountain of stone and laid the dwarves one by one down, Thorin as the first. I jumped down from the back of the eagle and stared at the lifeless, maltreated body. On his beautiful nose emblazoned a extensive bloody wound and he had countless abrasions in his clear-cut face. I thought of the frightening feeling that he will no longer wake up. Rigidly, I stood a few metres apart when Gandalf ran up to the broken Thorin and knelt down. He stretched out his hand and held it over Thorin's face as he whispered something incomprehensible. The dwarven king slowly opened his eyes and it took a load off my mind.

"The halfling?", he whispered in a frangible voice and I shuddered. He meant me.

"All is well, Bilbo is here", said Gandalf smiling warmly.

"All by himself", he added, looking at me proudly. When I realized that Thorin was doing fairly well to the circumstances, I breathed relieved and my lips formed into a humble smile. Thorin sat up, Kili and Dwalin grabbed him under his arms and lifted him up. Staggering, he came to stand and pushed away their helping hands as he stared at me with his insistent eyes.

"You", he said with a deep voice and pressed a hand into his aching side. His eyes were scowling at me and my smile waned.

"What have you done?" I swallowed hard and my throat felt dry. _What is happening?_

"Did you know that you almost plunged into death?" He went one step towards me and I didn't know how to respond. His gorgeous face seized me completely.

"Did I not say you are a burden to us?" Threatening, he went another step towards me and my heartbeat was tumbling.

"That you can't survive alone in the wilderness?" He was now right in front of me and I quickly closed my mouth.

"And have no place among us?" My eyes wandered to the ground and I felt his intimate gaze on me. _He's going to push me off the cliff and has to carry a burden less,_  went through my mind.

"I've never been so wrong in my life." His voice was rough and gentle and he closed the gap between us. His muscular arms wrapped around my body and he pressed me into his cuddlesome coat. I felt warm and cold at the same time and there was a tingling feeling on my skin where he touched me with his hands. Hesitantly, I put my hands around his waist and felt his strong back muscles. _How they must look without the cloak..., I_  purred inside. When I noticed my impish smile, my cheeks were as hot as fire and I bit myself embarrassed on the inside of my cheeks. My heart beat breakneck against my chest and I was sure Thorin felt it. I noticed the relieved laughter of the other dwarves and they also hugged each other, glad to be escaped more or less uninjured from the claws of the orcs. We both remained long in this embrace and I enjoyed the warmth to Thorin, the venerable king under the mountain. I had to admit that at that moment I was overrun by my feelings and didn't even know the exact reason for it. _Or I didn't dare saying it out loud._ After some time, Thorin brought a little distance between us again and pushed me gently, but his hands slipped on my hips and rested there. His beautiful face with the many abrasions was so close to me, just like his handsome body and I felt constricted on the one, but also a little... attracted. _If not even more than a little._

"Bilbo", murmured Thorin and in my whole body arose a pleasant shudder. Hearing my name from his mouth was like a blessing; as if I had finally received his confidence. He looked deeply into my eyes and my hackles raised.

"Turn around." I stared at him with big eyes and my mouth opened speechless. _What? Why? Could it be..._ I got quite warm on my cheeks. Thorin grinned lightly and his big hands on my hips felt far too good. He carefully turned me around and walked one step aside so that he stood right next to me.

"Look", he said and I followed his eyes. A huge mountain with a tip of ice loomed in front of the orange-red sun in the distant horizon. It was a beautiful sight. _So that is it._  
Thorin slowly head for it and remained on the edge of the abyss. The others followed our gaze.

"Erebor", said Gandalf and the dwarves approached us, no less dreamy.

"The Lonely Mountain. The last of the dwarven kingdoms in Middle-earth. "

"Our home", said Thorin and his face adorned a proud smile. My eyes were directed at him, but from the corner of my eye I noticed a tiny wing blow. Involuntary I had to reciprocate his smile.

"A raven! The birds are returning to the mountain", said Oin happily.

"That, my dear Oin, is a thrush", Gandalf had to put his oar in and I shook my head almost imperceptibly. But Thorin wasn't impressed and while I was looking at him, I noticed the strong blue of his eyes in the morning sunlight.

"We'll see it as a sign. A good omen", he whispered, looking at me. I became nervous.

"You-you're right. I think the worst is behind us." Thorin raised an eyebrow.

"When did I allow you to speak to me like that?" My body froze.

"E-erm..." An amused smile played around his red lips. _Oh..._

"U-um, I-I'm sorry, v-value king", I stammered stupidly and felt my cheeks throbbing with heat. Thorin's grin made me outright nervous.

"Well, I'll allow you to. After you saved my life, I guess I'm in your debt." I nodded and stared everywhere, but just not in his direction. I bit my lip and stopped it immediately. I felt so warm.  
Gandalf pompous piped up at this moment.

"It'd be advisable to continue our journey and seek for a sheltered place for a short rest. We seem to be a way ahead of the orcs for a few hours." The dwarves agreed with him and they slowly followed the path down. Thorin remained standing beside me, but Gandalf sent for him:

"Thorin, we need the leader of our company at the front line!" I heard Thorin quietly muttering and I supressed my laughter painfully. He walked off me and I looked after him when his slight limp catched my eye. With anxious mien I followed him. _Gandalf and the others really expect a lot of him and take his indefatigability for granted. Let him rest once, he was bitten by a warg after all. Who knows what all he must have broken... And I cry because of my few bruises. It's advisable to stay close to him and be able to help by him. I appreciate his presence very much anyway, I admit that..._

"Hey, Bilbo, wait a minute", I turned around and saw Fili. He, too, seemed to have taken some abrasions on his face, but they were much less than Thorin's.

"Hm?", I asked, pushing me carefully through Ori and Gloin. Fili followed me and collected an annoyed growl of Gloin when he unconsciously barged into him.

"Bilbo, you aren't angry with us for the cause of Rivendell anymore, are you?", he asked with a hopeful undertone in his voice. I rolled my eyes and saw Kili appear next to me.

"We're really sorry if we caught you out by surprise", he said, looking at me shrugging,

"we didn't think anything of it."

"Well, you both seem to be pretty good at that, don't you?", I said grouchy. _Just leave me alone, don't you see I'm busy?_ But Fili couldn't be despised. He fastened his footsteps and put his hand on my shoulder. Eye-rolling I stopped.

"Bilbo, can't we forget? Among friends, we just make these quips, which were really not meant to be serious. It won't certainly happen again", asserted Fili. I had to admit I liked the fact that Fili and Kili saw me as a friend. That really meant a lot to me, especially since I've never called someone by my side voluntarily a 'friend". I smiled a little.

"It's all right, Fili, let's just leave it by that." Fili smiled relieved back and Kili poked me playfully into the side.

"Hey!", I squealed and kept my arms protecting in front of my chest. Fili's eyes widened and his lips formed into a sneaky grin.

"I remember, the little halfling was ticklish!", he said triumphantly and came menacingly towards me.

"Not to my knockledge", I said and went slowly a step back, but there was Kili already.

"Not?", asked Kili, raising an eyebrow. He dart a grinning look at Fili and grabbed me around my stomach before I could escape breakneck.

"No!", I screamed and writhed myself in vain.

"I wouldn't advise you to, you'll definitely regret that!" But the two only laughed insidiously. Fili stretched out his fingers and tickled me to death.

"N-n-no, s-stop! S-s-s-stop i-it!" I chuckled between hysterical laughs and tried to defend myself. The two deceitful dwarves grinned contented while I was out of breath.

"What's the matter with you?", shouted Dwalin and all eyes were directed at us. Kili abrupt dropped me and I slumped to the ground. _Very kind of you._ I quickly stood up again and tapped the dirt off my legs.

"Well... we just... eh... bugged Bilbo... a little...?", said Fili and his grin didn't seem to disappear. Kili returned his grin and looked amused at Dwalin.

"Your judgement, Dwalin?" Dwalin grumbled and turned head shaking forward again. Now Thorin turned to us and I noticed his deathly pale face. I stared at him hirrified. He had a black look, but he was very much taken by the consequences of the fight.

"Baggins, come to the front and don't disturb the others." His voice sounded weary, but the imperious undertone still resonated in his words. Without hesitation, I went after his orders, especially since I wanted to stay near him in the first place. Nevertheless, the "Baggins" hit me hard, because I thought we were now something like... companions? I went to Bofur and watched Thorin going ahead of me. I noticed his limp and the constant pressing of his fingers in the right side of his body. I didn't dare speaking to him or anyone else, which is why I gazed after him in silence. Abruptly I was pushed forward and almost collided with the dwarven king.

"Uf! Excuse me", I said quickly and had a hostile look at Bofur who was grinning at me with his thumbs raised.

"I don't mind", grumbled Thorin. He seemed disinterested and absent. We walked a long time silently next to each other. I leered more closely to the body next to me and stared at his big hands with which he held his side. On one of his long fingers I discovered a large, magnificent ring of silver. Inside he was made of a black gemstone and on the outside he wore shiny silver decorations. He looked very noble.

"Do you like my ring?", asked Thorin dullly with the gaze directed forward. I was surprised that he asked me something, even though he seemed so immersed in thoughts.

"Eh... just a little", I said and swallowed. Quickly I looked forward again and oppressed a yawn, for I couldn't take a real rest since Rivendell, my unconsciousness excluded. For an unexplained reason, I made new self-confidence from my fatigue.

"From where do you have the ring if I may ask?", I spoke open-minded. Thorin's eyes were for a short term on me, then he looked at the ring.

"Dís gave it to me. She never wanted to tell me exactly where she had it before." My stomach tightened.  _She?_ I stared at the floor. _But Fili and Kili said he didn't have a... partner._ I touched my neck.

"Well... do you miss her? Your... eh, beloved?", I asked and didn't want to know the answer at all. Yet Thorin's gaze remained rigidly directed forward and I noticed the earnestness in his beautiful face.

"Dís is my sister." I looked up immediately.

"Oh?", I said a little too fast. I bit my lip and tried to hide my relief. But Thorin didn't care, I wasn't even sure if he had even noticed it. His eyes appeared motionless and he seemed to clench his teeth. I didn't dare asking him about his well-being and walked silently beside him. His steady pressing in the right sight of his body catched my eye and I stared at his hand. Then I noticed something shimmering on his long fingers and inhaled harshly. It was dark red. Thorin looked at me with a serious mien and followed my gaze. He stared frowning at the blood flowing down from his fingers. His face was so heavily chalk-white that it frightened me. All of a sudden he sank down to the ground and didn't move a muscle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we're at the end of the first movie. I hope you have had a pleasant journey up to here and will continue reading my story so diligent. I can tell you there'll still be a lot of action going on... *cough* ;)


	16. It's Approaching

"Thorin!", I screamed in panic and tried to aid him with my hands, but I reacted too late. His body slipped lifeless to the ground. Dwalin and Bofur hurried to me and leaned Thorin's back carefully at a large stone in a niche. I stared at his closed eyes and my stomach tightened cramped.

"It's the injuries, someone has to bind them!", I screaked and was terrified of my own voice. I coughed nervous and my cheeks heated up. Gandalf walked to us with quick steps while Dwalin was already taking the heavy coat from Thorin's shoulders.

"We need some water and bandages to provide the wounds!", shouted Gandalf and ordered Fili and Kili to look for a water source nearby. Bofur rummaged bandages out of the little bag on his belt and put it beside Thorin. Dwalin removed the perforated scale armour from his body and I was staring at the shirt sucked with blood. An icy shiver ran over my back while a heavy knot swelled in my chest. Dwalin looked frozen at the deep red blood and tore the thin shirt apart. I quickly turned around. I felt the throbbing heat in my cheeks and closed my eyes. A strange impulse in me ordered me to turn around, but I just shook my head and opened my eyes again. Then Fili and Kili came to us, both with bulging water bowls in their hands.

"Where did you get these?", asked Gandalf and handed them further to Bofur. Kili shrugged and said:

"Stood next to a wooden chair just in front of the little pond we found." Gandalf looked thoughtfully at them and then went over to Bofur, firmly grabbing his wooden staff. Kili followed him, but Fili stood in front of me and surveyed me.

"Why do you stand there... with your back to them?", he asked forth. I him looked right into his eyes and oppressed a bugged eye-roll.

"You know why. Particularly as I don't think a dwarven king would approve it if I see him that way", I said serious. Fili's corners of the mouth rose up.

"Oh, I think he'd approve it very well, especially in awaken condition", he said, winking at me. _What is he tryring to imply?_ Then he stared past me and his amused expression fell.

"But I can really understand why you don't want to see that." With a fixed look he passed me and in my head were pictures of ghastly wounds. I grabbed my head and tried to forget it again while I waited.  
After a few minutes, Gandalf broke the silence:

"That should suffice for the next few hours, then it has to be changed again. It'd be wise to build a camp here first, so that Thorin's wounds can heal and we all regain strength." _How attentive of you,_ I thought and turned around. The dwarves stood up and began to secure the location and prepare some food. I was staring at Thorin. He had the cloak around his shoulders and seemed to be conscious again, for he slowly whispered to Dwalin who then nodded and followed the other dwarves with some hesitation. Fili and Kili sat next to Thorin, but when they looked at me, they stood up at the same time and joined Bofur. I didn't miss the short wink of Fili and looked him frowning afterwards. My gaze wandered back to Thorin and I stared at the generous bandage around his hips. To my horror, I had a tempting view of his bare and well-toned chest and his strong abdominal muscles, which were clearly visible under the bandage. My cheeks heated and I quickly closed my mouth before anything unprepared happened. I sat near him, but didn't want to crowd him and left a space of twenty inches between us. His face was pale, but had again taken on some colour and I noticed that his eyes were on me. I got warmer around my cheeks and I quickly looked somewhere else.

"You appear to get along very well with Fili and Kili." His voice was quiet, but as always bloodcurdling deep and I shuddered.

"Y-yes, I think so", I said and shirked from his captivating look. From my corner of my eye I saw him nodding briefly. A silence arose.

"You seem to dislike the sight of blood, am I right? That's why you don't like looking at me right now", he said suddenly. My body froze. _Does that mean he noticed my constant gawping? Well, the crucial quention is probably who didn't. And now he thinks I'm only not daring a look at him because he has covered himself with blood? If he knew that I was much more likely stopping before his bare presence... And the strange feelings that rise up._  I was silent.

"Your silence tells me that there's something else that could be a reason." I swallowed and still looked everywhere, just not at him. I thought of a snippy answer to somehow get out of this situation, but I didn't come up with anything. I stared stained at the little fire that Ori just built.

"Why don't you confess it to me?", asked Thorin with a demanding undertone. Nervous, I scratched my neck.

"Y-you know what happened in Rivendell...", I said quietly. I watched Bombur as he skewered something on a stick and held it over the blazing fire.

"So, it doesn't appeal to you that I'm sitting here so little dressed?" _Oh, and how it appeals to me,_ I thought. I shrugged meaningless my shoulders. My gaze now slipped at him and my eyes immediately went over his body, before I could tear myself away and stare elsewhere. At that moment a cold gust of wind hissed past me and every tiny muscle in my body froze. I just noticed now that everything was freezing except to my throbbing cheeks. I trembled lightly.

"You can have my coat", grumbled Thorin, pulling it as a matter of course from his shoulders. I opened my mouth and stammered quick:

"N-No, t-this isn't necessary, otherwise y-you'll eh, be cold." Thorin's look hardened.

"I'm a dwarf, I don't care about the cold; it belongs to my blood. I don't want to be responsible for you catching a cold", he said. My eyes wandered to him again. I stared at his bare muscular arms and swallowed heavily. _This is really too much of a good thing on one day and it's not even the late morning. My cheeks will probably never cool down again. At least not near him._ Spread on his lap laid the cloak.

"Come here", commanded Thorin raucous. I shuddered and stared at him hesitantly. _What? Now? What does he intend? Should I, should I not? All of this makes me so nervous... He makes me nervous. From the very beginning. But why?_ Another gust went past me and I shivered immediately. Hesitantly, I sat beside him but kept a generous distance between us. It was strange to be so close to him. _Strange and exciting, somehow. My God, I should stop this. But I can't. It's Thorin sitting next to me. The king. I can't think of a clear idea. Damn. I don't understand myself anymore._ Thorin carefully put the coat over my shoulders and at the same time covered his hips, probably just to pay me off. A pleasing warmth transited my body, but it wasn't really because of the coat. My heart knocked of nervousness strongly against my chest and I stared at my feet. The niche in which we sat offered protection from the rising morning sun and I noticed the fatigue in me arising again. _So nicely warm..._

"You should sleep a little", whispered Thorin and I closed my eyes, but it took me a long time to finally fall asleep. I cuddled in the cloak and listened to my exploding heartbeat. _I hope nobody sees me like that._

 

 

  
I felt a strong beguiling feeling in my chest as I slowly awoke. My head and my right shoulder leaned on something warm that caused a delightful tingling on my skin. With some time I perceived soft noises in my surroundings but couldn't locate them.

"What are we going to do now, Thorin? The orcs are not for long in our backs, they'll soon catch up with us. We might be about two days ahead of them, and then? Where shall we go, all our supplies are depleted or withering in the orcs town, how shall we go through it?" The voice seemed old and wise. A similar one came along, but I felt the need of rolling my eyes.

"I know someone not far from here, who could help us. But the march would take more than a whole day, breaks excluded. If we wish to move forward at this tempo, we must leave before the third hour. I'll lead you." Steps walked off.

"Do you think Bilbo had to sustain a lot of injuries? Who knows what has happened to him in the caves." A short silence arose when a dark voice sounded right next to me.

"He has many abrasions on his hands and seems to have bruised some dorsal vertebras." Someone breathed air harshly.

"Poor Bilbo. Do you think he'll be able to... stand the way to this... friend of Gandalf?"

"Without a doubt, I'll take care of this." The warming sensation in my breast swelled.

"But also think of your health, Thorin, your wounds mustn't torn up again." My ears heard a faint snort.

"My injuries are unimportant."

"No, don't take it that lightly. You've lost a lot of blood and your body has to regenerate again. If something like that happens again-"

"It's enough, Balin." I heard a rustling and then slow, removing steps. The person next to me breathed tense. A silence laid around me and as I listened to the breathing next to me, my head began to process the voices. _Balin. Gandalf. Thorin. Wait. Thorin? The voice came from the right. Right... My shoulder is leaning on something. Something warm. And my skin burns. Oh no. Damn. Does that mean my cheek... is on Thorin's shoulder?_ After I was sure that Thorin had fallen asleep again I lifted my head and brought a big distance between us.

 

 

  
I opened my eyes and sat up straight. My fingers clutched the soft coat and I loosened my grab. Judging by the pain of my left hip, my body had slipped to the side at night and curled up to a ball. I seemed to have pulled the coat and then pressed it at me tightly in sleep. _At least it was just the coat._ I looked around and couldn't see a single dwarf. Actually, I'd have had to panic, but at that moment I found Thorin's garment in my hands much more interesting. I crossed my legs and put the coat on my lap. It was made of royal blue leather and when I went over the contours with my fingers I noticed a dark brown colour between the seams. I assumed that the tanned animal skin had been a deer or similar, but the white fur irritated me. I wondered how a deer with dark skin could wear a snow-white fur. _Snow. Of course. In the Blue Mountains there are certainly many deer as such._  I was looking at the collar for initials, which might have revealed me more, but found nothing similar. I looked around for a moment and still couldn't see anyone. Before I started to shiver in cold again, I covered myself with the oat and inhaled the fragrance of masculinity. Of Thorin. _That sounds weird. We'd better leave it._ I got up quickly and looked for the others in my surroundings. I identified Fili, Kili, Ori, Bofur and Balin standing next to a huge rock. Bofur and Balin were deeply involved in a conversation, while Fili immediately noticed me and waved at me.

"Hey, Bilbo, over here!" I raised a thumb upward and went up to them. When I arrived at Fili, he looked at me very insistent.

"Slept well?", he asked. I considered whether it was a kind of trick question.

"To be honest, yes", I answered cheerful. Fili turned to his brother and the two exchanged looks.

"Our dearest uncle seems not. Bilbo, what did you do that he's taking his mood out on us now?", I furrowed my brow.

"Me? Why do you think it's because of me?", I asked. Fili loosened his arms from the folding.

"Well, when we all finished eating, we sat down to take a rest. And it was just so cute how you two sat there. You were snuggling really close into our uncle and were smiling... even Thorin seemed calm for the first time after a long time. In any case, we were then awakened ungently by him and his orders at an early stage. Now, as an outsider, you have to accept that something must have happened between you two." My face ran purple.

"You... you saw that?", I went into it and hoped for another answer. Fili grinned at me.

"We all did, Bilbo, so tell me. What did you do?" I touched the heated forehead and drove with the fingers through my short curls. _What shall I say?_

"W-well I first woke up a little while ago. Then I noticed that I was sitting so close to... well, _him_ and then just moved away a little, so I didn't crowd him. T-then I must have turned around further in my sleep, until I laid farther away next to the log." Fili shook his head stunnedly and Kili chuckled quietly. He spoke to me:

"Oh, Bilbo, if you'd know... Thorin never does anything like that. He appreciates our nearness, but would have never allowed any of us to use him as a pillow, unlike you." My eyes widened.

"Now you're joking, I've only been leaning my shoulder on!", I said and heard the uncertainty in my voice. _Can that really be?_

"Don't be like that now, all the other dwarves and me can testify to that", he laughed and patted me teasingly on the shoulder. Fili approached me with an earnest countenance and said:

"Bilbo, even if you think otherwise, but Thorin is always so... calmed down at your presence. And now he offered you a place next to him, even let himself be used as a cushion and then you just left. This is as if you spent the night with someone and then they disappear the next morning." My cheeks became unbearable hot.

"T-this is a b-bad comparison", I stammered. Fili's serious face adorned a cheeky grin.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. But both of you know nothing about that anyway", he laughed and winked. My mouth felt dry. _It's all going so much in the wrong direction._ Kili turned frowning to his brother.

"Wait, does that mean you..?", he asked without speaking the sentence to the end. Fili scratched his neck.

"Possible", he said. Kili cast a peculiar glance at him and Fili stared at his boots. A silence arose.

,,... Whatever, I don't want to know it that well", he said and walked away from us. Fili looked after him and I didn't know how to react, so I just said:

"This... is all too much for me." Fili turned back to me.

"Hm... Come, Bilbo, I kept you some of the food", he said, walking in the same direction that his brother went. I followed him in silence.


	17. Tensions

We met the other dwarves and Gandalf. My gaze flitted immediately to Thorin, but he didn't heed me. He wore a dark brown shirt and the thin scale armour to which he owed his life, over it. _Where did he get the shirt? Did someone give it to him?,_ I wondered. Unless Gandalf conjured it up. Fili headed for Bombur and got something pressed into his hand.

"Here, Bilbo, unfortunately it's cold. I hope you like... charred mushrooms", he said, holding a stick with skewered wild mushrooms in front of my nose. I took it.

"Thanks. Kind of you to think of me", I said honest and Fili broadly smiled at me. I bit off the skewer and chewed on the leathery piece. _Rather than nothing._

"You don't seem that thrilled now", laughed Fili. I slugged the food laboriously down and grinned back.

"There are some simple spices missing, but apart from that we're already at a very high level of taste", I said convinced.

"I'll align it to the chef", said Fili, turning to Bombur to engage him in conversation. For a short moment I stared at him puzzled, but then I clutched the cloak in my hand more tightly. _I think I should give it back, though I'd prefer to keep it._ I turned to the other dwarves and felt for some reason observed. My gaze wandered to Thorin who was looking at me with a cloudy mien. When I looked him submissively in the piercing eyes, he turned away from me coldly.

"Set out." His voice sounded iron and imperious. I stared at him and felt a cold in my body.

"Didn't you find the remark of Fili odd, too? What did he mean by that?", suddenly asked Kili beside me. I didn't notice him, I only had eyes for Thorin.

"No idea", I said and joined the other dwarves. I forced my way through the gang and nibbled at the scewer until I arrived at the front row. I felt my knees soften as I moved near Thorin. I'd have preferred turning back but I really wanted to give him back his coat after I had pinched it while I was dreaming. I walked insecure to him and with every step my nervousness rose.

"U-um... Thorin?", I murmured as I almost stood beside him. He didn't look at me, but grumbled in response. I bit nervous on the inside of my cheeks.

"Uh, here's your coat." My voice sounded brittle and I cleared my throat with reddening cheeks. _Embarrassing_. Thorin looked at me briefly and took his cloak, which he put on majestically. _Mmm, he looks so good in it..._ I avoided biting my lip and quickly looked forward. After some time of silence and searching for words, I gathered all my courage and stammered, to my regret:

"W-well, I-I really didn't want to bother you this morning, I-I mean, a king has a claim t-to distance of his... eh... attentance." I'd have loved to give me a clamp for my stuttering me. Shaking my head, I stared at the ground.

"I am no king", said Thorin drily. _For me you are,_ went abruptly through my head. I looked up again.

"I-I came to rest very well today and... kind of... even... um, appreciated it." I hoped inwardly that my words didn't sound as silly as I thought.

"What exactly did you appreciate, little halfling?", Thorin asked and I shuddered. I noticed a minimal impish smile on his lips.

"You- your... benevolence", I halted. Thorin looked at me for a long time, he seemed to eye every millimeter of my face and everything in me melted away.

"Your cheeks don't blush so thoroughly", he remarked, and of course I became scarlet red in my face at that moment. He smiled amused.

"There it is again." I stared at the ground. _Bilbo, you're darn embarrassing. Where has my self-confidence gone? Usually I crack jokes on every occasion. But around him I can never. He makes me look weak, I don't want that._

"You trade on that...", I murmured and dropped the nibbled off stick to the ground.

"Does that mean I'm the reason for it?", he asked smugly. I halted and stared at his princely face. _Oh..._ In my head I searched for excuses in vain.

"E-eh, n-no... that happens to me with all sorts of things", I laughed nervously. Thorin's lips twisted into an amused grin. His eyes wandered briefly over the landscape.

"I'm sorry I doubted you." My chest warmed up.

"N-no, you don't have to say that, I doubted myself and... uh, still do", I said honest. Now his deep blue eyes looked into mine again.

"You shall not. There's no reason for it, Bilbo." I smiled secretly. _This flatters me. Darn, how silly that sounds._ We walked in silence; I had to arrange my tangled thoughts and interpret my constant blushing as a plausible explanation. Never during my whole life were my cheeks hot, never got I such a cold shiver because of the voice of a person and never felt this warmth, this pushy tingling in the area of my chest. It frightened me a little and I wondered if I couldn't have caught worms or other parasites, but then I found no explanation for the comforting warmth that took place there. Of course, all this was due to the person next to me, but I wasn't able to understand why. _Actually, I just refuse to believe the real reason._

 

 

  
After we walked many hours and I bothered my head about all sorts of things, we set up a temporary night camp at dusk to favor our tired eyes. But before I could slip back under Thorin's coat, because that's what I was up to the whole cold afternoon, I was chosen to look after the mob of orcs.

"We just send Bilbo up, he could take a quick look", suggested Kili and I'd have love to strangle him.

"No. I will not expose him to the danger of being discovered." Thorin crossed his arms darkly and touched me unconscious with his shoulder. I coughed nervously surprised by the shiver and felt the heat soaring in my head. _Damn it, Bilbo, what are you doing? Now just quickly weasel yourself out again._

"E-eh, that's all right, I'd love to do that", said I and smiled feigned when all eyes were on me. Kili grinned confidently.

"Excellent. Seems like _you_ have no say to our master burglar, uncle", he smirked and, as a precaution went back a step, for Thorin seemed sorely enraged. But he only grumbled menacingly and then turned to me.

"If there'll be any trouble, you come back immediately, understand?", he growled. I was only capable of a short nod and overheard the giggles of Fili.

"That's an order." I swallowed and tried to get the indecent thoughts out of my head.

"Bilbo Baggins manages to do that, I doubt that it'll be necessary", Gandalf suddenly raised the word and as if by magic my previous thoughts were wiped away. I'd have loved to have rolled my eyes, but since he was exactly eyeing me at that moment, it'd have been quite counterproductive. I nodded again and went to the little mountain near our camp, obviously not without taking another look at Thorin. He was still disapproving and seemed to restrain himself with all his strength from not yelling at the dwarves for their behavior. It was clear that he didn't like not to be authorized by them. But when I was a little closer to the top of the stony mountain, I could hear how Thorin revenged himself on them by commanding them around in a sovereign way. I grinned involuntarily. I climbed the mountain further up and slipped several times, but was able to rescue myself again and again.

"Damn pebbles!", I grumbled as I nearly fell to the ground again and was saved by a rock next to me. When I straightened myself, I noticed a change around me. I crouched behind rocks and let my gaze wander as I discovered them. Several miles before me, a huge white warg reared in front of the abyss, on it sat the pale orc Azog, whose disfigured face adorned a murderous countenance. Next to him, two more wargs and orcs appeared, both orcs had a non-lesser expression on their faces. Before my stomach everted in fear, I noticed another figure on the right. My gaze went across and I saw a formidable creature with a dark brown fur. As I narrowed my eyes to a slit to identify the creature in the distance better, I noticed the big paws and the black, heart-shaped nose. It was a bear of frightening magnitude. Azog's eyes wandered over the landscape and he suddenly stared right in my direction. Resigned I pulled my head down and hoped it wasn't too late. There was a silence. Carefully I peeped out behind the rock and saw Azog and his subservients grimly scowling turning back. Relieved, I exhaled and started back.  
Arriving at the foot of the mountain, I headed for the now completed night camp.

"Bilbo! Did they see you?" It was the voice of Kili. I walked to the dwarves, who were like a circle around me. Thorin pushed Dwalin aside and his eyes went checking over my body. I dodged his gaze and said quietly to Kili:

"N-no, they didn't... b-" Relieved laughs sounded on the part of the dwarves who patted each other on the backs and were already turning to other things when Thorin stopped them with his voice.

"What is it that you saw?", he asked calmly and decisively. I swallowed and said:

"S-something big, kind of a ... beast." At that moment Gandalf inquisitive piped up.

"What exact form did he take on?", he asked understandably. I looked at him with raised eyebrow. _He?_

"The of a bear, but three times its size." Gandalf nodded understanding and suddenly patted my shoulder gently.

"Well done, Bilbo", he said, turning to the dwarves,

"as you can see, our master burglar performs his duties exquisitely. It's late and it's been a long day, we should get some sleep. But beware, the Pale Orc is not far away from us." The dwarves nodded earnestly and Thorin stationed the sentries and took over the first watch. Dwalin commented it with a grunt, but agreed.

"Bilbo, we've kept you a place at the fire!", yelled Kili and brandished inviting with his hand. My gaze was on Thorin, who had climbed some foot of the mountain on which I had been looking for the orcs and now leaned observing against a rock, the sword combat-ready in his hands.

"I... come right after, Kili", I said. From the corner of my eye I saw his sober nod before he turned around and went to the campfire. My feet carried me to the mountain and thus to Thorin, although I didn't even know exactly what I could tell him. But turn around I could still less, so I slowed down my steps and brood over words. Far too quickly I suddenly stood near him; the deep blue eyes rested on me carefully. I avoided staring back, then uncertain sat down on the stony ground and dropped my gaze on the passing dust. Only a few moments later, Thorin settled himself beside me, looking forward. There was a peaceful silence, but I was sure he could hear my thundering heartbeat. I bowed my head up and counted the dozens of stars that lit the black sky brightly. In the next moment my eyes wandered to my right and I noticed Thorin's ingratiating glance at me. A cold shiver ran over my back and I winced in surprise. _Embarrassing. Since when do I react to a normal look like that? But his eyes shine in such a radiant sapphire blue... Oh, Bilbo, stop it._ I wanted to tear myself away from his dominant gaze, but couldn't. My pulse struck me painfully to the throat and Thorin had to notice my nervousness without a doubt.

"Was the current way very arduous for you?", he asked, looking forward again. I stared at his big hands and the pitch-dark ring.

"N-no, it was alright", I said, although it really ached at one or two vertebral bones while walking. Thorin nodded and went searching with his eyes over the landscape.

"Our highest priority will anyhow soon be that your bones heal again and you don't feel any pain anymore", he suddenly said and my body warmed up from the inside. _Mmmh..._

"I-I'm fine", I said. He looked briefly at me.

"Well, as long as you don't have to go back on a horse's back and rub yourself sore somewhere." With my eyes widened I stared at the whimsically grin around his red lips and swallowed heavily. _Oh God. Were my pains caused by the constant sitting so obvious? How embarrassing._ My lips remained sealed and the grin on Thorin's face no longer seemed to wane. I quickly stared into the starry sky to cool my throbbing cheeks in some way off and remained a long time, not to look to the right, in that position. After I was feeling cold around my shoulders and the fatigue in me emerged, I dropped my look and turned around to lean on something, but there was no possibility. _Well, you can't say that now. On my right really is a wonderful possibility..._ I shook my head minimally, but my thoughts revolved around one thought. _Should I, should I not? Wait, we've had this scenario before.._. Before my concerns could continue corroding me from the inside, I just did it, especially since my eyes were falling asleep. We sat close together and I felt his warmth transferred to my body when I closed my eyes and carefully leaned my head on his shoulder. I knew that in the next moment he'd push me away from him and would look at me in a vitriolic way, but nothing of the sort happened. My ears listened carefully to the rhythmic breathing and my cheeks felt the slight beating of his heart. I wanted to feel more of these sounds on my cheeks, _as weird as it sounded_ and put my head on his chest, right over his heart. I suddenly felt a warmth on my ears and rough fingers twirled my short curls. There was a pleasant goosebump on my whole body and my hackles raised. His fingers went through my curls and I had to make an effort not to purr like a cat out loud. _That'll be the day._   _But... it feels so good. God, I can't help doing it._  Then I heard the beating of his heart again and grinned. It seemed to have accelerated.


	18. What a Service

When I opened my eyes, I didn't know where I was at first. I felt no warmth in my stomach and immediately felt strange. Well rested, but still tired from sleep and with a gloomy sight I put my hands on the earthy ground and pushed me up. _Earthy?_ I rubbed my eyes and discovered the extinguished campfire in front of my feet. I stopped in my motion. _How did I get here?_ My head turned to the right and I looked with frowning forehead at the mountain, where I sat on yesterday's evening. I stared back at the campfire and my head smoked in effort, while my thoughts circled around. _Yesterday I was still up there. On the way. Now I'm here. I was up there. I wasn't alone. Someone sat next to me, I leaned on him. Thorin. Where is he?_ My mind was interrupted by a cheerful voice.

"Huh, Bilbo, well rested?" Without recognizing a face I could immediately assign the lively voice to a specific dwarf.

"Fili", I murmured lazily and stroked a whorled curl behind my ear, which tickled me tedious on the cheek. Fili chuckled elated and fluted:

"How... he-erm, was it with my uncle up there yesterday?" I felt the claret blood flowing in my cheeks and stared to the floor, more or less doing so in vain to overact my uncertainty.

"What should have happened up there?" I asked unindebted, looking for small stones which I could throw at Fili. He went a big step towards me and asked mysteriously smiling:

"Don't you even wonder how you landed down here?" He raised his eyebrows mischievous and I tapped my forehead at him without a word. Shocked, he soaked in air and his hand wandered to his shoulder as he suddenly pulled a sharply shining sword. A challenging grin was on his face, while my eyes widened in suspicion. _So he wants to attack the unarmed? Really without any decency, this dwarf._ I quickly got up and didn't let the shimmering and blood-splashed sword blade out of my sight. I suppressed the feeling of having to surrender. Fili's eyes sparkled with fighting fun but to my relief it seemed very playful.

"Draw your sword, you ill-behaved little hobbit!", shouted Fili and sticked out the top of wrought steel. My fingers laid on the sword sheath on my belt, but noticed the light and hollow-acting weight. I looked down at me.

"What sword shall I draw if I have none to hand?" I asked and looked at Fili again who was still standing in an offensive combat position to me.

"Or even better, just put it out immediately." Fili lowered the sword and drew forth another much smaller sword which he threw at me. I caught it and tried to ignore the black blood when I put it back in the sword sheath.

"Are all of the hobbits such bores like you, Bilbo Baggins?", asked Fili and put as well his sword away. I shrugged my shoulders and joked:

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I only have one version and it's right in front of you. So beware of your tongue, or else it'll be cut off." Fili chuckled.

"By who? You? You only reach for your sword if something could happen to Thorin." He winked at me and I shunned his nagging eyes by looking at the surroundings with my gaze. _Better look away. What is he thinking? He's talking bollocks_. It seemed to be deserted around us, and no one appeared to be present, only the shoe prints in the ground and the remnants of the campfire betrayed a possible stay.

"Where are the others?", I asked quickly. Fili's mysterious grin went wider.

"At the river." I nodded lightly, my brow thoughtfully wrinkled.

"Didn't we need to hurry to get to this friend of Gandalf?" Fili sighed in my opinion way too relaxed.

"Ask Gandalf, who is bubbling with rage and has a considerable blush on his face. Reminds me of someone." I rolled my eyes and suddenly he knuffed me in the cheek. I dodged back indignant and felt my cheeks even more burning. Fili grinned and turned on the heel.

"Come with me, they just went to the river a moment ago. They've probably been swept up by Gandalf and are ready to leave." I nodded and followed his tipsy steps. _He's acting weird. Different. Has anything happened in my absence? How did I end up there at the campfire? Am I sleepwalking or did I wake up again without being able to remember it?_

We arrived at the river southeast of our camp and I immediately noticed the angry mumbling Gandalf standing a few metres in front of the river next to a tree, both hands propped on the wooden rod.

"You've all had enough, now put on your clothes again and continue our journey, the enemies are on our heels! My goodness, you should really take this serious!" My ears pricked up and I was staring at the water reflecting in the sun while we arrived next to Gandalf.

"Oh, dang it", I murmured, staring quickly at the gravel-covered ground. Fili was giggling next to me and I felt I went even more red in my face. _Not again_. _Luckily, they're standing up to the belly in the water so I don't have to see anything fatally._ Gandalf turned to us.

"Ah, Bilbo, good to see you. We used the intention to supply the wounds of Thorin with fresh water and to put on a new bandage, but the rest of the dwarves seem to disregard my orders generously." I felt a queasy feeling, but didn't know how to classify it. Steps were approaching and I lifted my gaze again. Kili, Dwalin and Thorin stood in front of us. They wore their clothes, had the swords unsheathed and I noticed that Thorin looked closely at me but I dodged his gaze, as much as I would've liked to look at him. The uneasy feeling in me outweighed and I knew it'd increase at his sight. I felt him taking the look off of me again.

"We were able to secure the surroundings but should leave immediately", said Thorin, while Kili threw cautious glances at Fili. Gandalf nodded and straightened himself up.

"Well, we should be able to catch up with the elapsed time." With a nod to Dwalin, Thorin told him to jam the rest of the dwarves. After a few minutes, all the dwarves were fully clothed in a circle around us and greeted me happily before they turned to Gandalf's words.

"Join in and march, the enemies are right on our heels", he ordered scarcely, turned and tramped ahead. Fili looked at me shrugging and followed him at a smart pace. Shaking my head I looked after him, when there was already Kili next to me. We walked in silence for a while, as Kili asked:

"Is anything the matter, Bilbo? You look very absent and you're so silent." I put him off, but the questions continued eating up my head and I knew Kili had answers.

"Kili, I don't understand one thing: Last night I was still sitting on that mountain to scout and I think I fell asleep up there, today I wake up in a completely different place and even alon-eh, never mind. Did Gandalf have his hands in any way in it?" Kili smirked aware and I raised questioning an eyebrow. He raised his hands in defense.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you, you're the only one who didn't get it anyway. Well, when Thorin was relieved by Dwalin after some time he quickly lifted you up and carried you all the way down to the camp. Then he sat right next to you and you both slept peacefully side by side, that's what I know from Ori." My eyes got big and my throat felt dry as dust.

"He... he carried me? Have I not been too heavy?", I murmured and scratched myself embarrassed at the neck. Kili laughed aloud and attracted the attention of the other dwarves, quickly apologized and grinned at me broadly.

"You and heavy? For me it looked like he carried a cushion of down feathers, with what ease he walked through the area with you on his arm." I bit on the inside of my cheeks and now I asked myself something else.

"Let us assume that... this approximates the truth. Then why does he leave me if he loathes it himself?" Kili scratched his beard and shook his head with amusement.

,,Oh, if you'd know. Thorin didn't do this voluntarily, he was only dragged away by Dwalin when his shirt began absorbing blood from his wounds. And we wanted to wake you up, but Thorin tried to get your sleep." I felt a warm shiver rising inside of me and stared at the ground. I decided to keep my mouth shut for the following time and let my grin speak.

.

.

.

  
A few hours later we were in a forest which was densely wooded with pine trees and berry bushes. My eyes stared at the axe in front of me, which was bleakly hauled over the earthy ground and shredded the dried leaves in front of my feet. My eyes wandered to the limp saggy arm which belonged to a tired-looking Bofur. I had to admit I felt miserable myself, since I still had no breakfast, let alone consumed _anything_ to eat or liquids. But I didn't want to complain to the dwarves or Gandalf either, who knows how they could have taken their temper out on me. And eager to find out was I not necessarily now. Since we were literally surrounded by quantities of juicy and brightly colored berries, I departed some steps from our path and berried some known berries that grew in the Shire or in front of my garden. I just bit with relish in a blood-red raspberry, as Ori appeared in front of me and looked at me.

"Hello, Bilbo. Do you have anything in particular in mind except just eating the berries?", he asked for an ancient reason and I knitted my brows, because his question sounded so absurd and I was unable to make head nor of this.

"Pardon?" I stopped abtruptly and let some blueberries roll in my jacket pocket. Ori stared at my hand and watched my movements, then he looked me right in the eyes again.

"Well, your lips are so red, I thought you were going to try out something." I was still confused and my changing facial features supported my bafflement.

"What should I want to try with that?" Ori's eyes again fell on my seemingly red lips, then he shrugged his shoulders. I raised an eyebrow and wiped the paint with a sleeve from my lips. Ori seemed absent.

"That red didn't look that bad." He turned around and headed to the direction of the voices to return to the dwarves. I looked at him thoughtfully for a brief moment, then I shook my head and followed him. Just as I met the dwarves again, a distant roar sounded and I stared resignedly in all directions.

"Wargs!", shouted Gandalf and tramped to Thorin.

"We have to hurry, they took up our trail. Follow me, it's not far away, we could make it." Thorin nodded seriously to him, turned to the other dwarves and ordered with a hard voice:

"Follow Gandalf!" They all started running, Gandalf as the first, while I tried to tear me away from panic and rushed stumbling behind them. The loud roar of a bear tore through the sky and I strove myself to run faster.

"This way!", shouted Gandalf, carrying the stick high above his head and with quick steps. We ran on a vast field with waist-high grass and yellow flowers, but I couldn't enjoy the surroundings for a long time, because the bear was right behind our heels, actually behind mine. I noticed that Bombur looked obliquely over his shoulder behind me and made big eyes, he suddenly ran off like a scared pony and overtook me easily. Groaning, I watched him as he scurried past all other dwarves and set his speed right next to Gandalf.

"The house! Go!" I screwed up my eyes to see the landscape and the alleged house in front of me, but the air in my lungs was so much gone because of the stress, that I put every effort in struggling for breath. What I could see in the next moment was a great high archway in front of us what Gandalf and the dwarves headed for.

"Go on, go inside!" I ran my lungs bloody and rushed after the dwarves. My ears heard muffled sounds and I inwardly hoped that the dwarves didn't run headless against the front door.

"Open the door!"  
At a minimum moment I spotted Thorin, he unlocked the door and the dwarves swarmed inside while I was heading for it. With all my strength I gritted my teeth and ran through the door, closely followed by Gandalf, who seemed to probably have waited for me. The door was shut by the dwarves and I heard the snap of a giant bear jaw, before the door crashed against his snout. In pure stress, I pulled out my sword and was sure that I couldn't have saved anyone at this state. The dwarves pressed with all their strength against the wooden door and could push the beast back. Hastily, they moved the billet of wood before the lock and locked the door. They breathed relieved and I quickly put the sword back.

"What _is_ that?" Ori said out loud and turned to Gandalf, who has set up a delighted smile. _He smiles? To me, this isn't the right time to feel cheery. I need a new lung._

"That is our host." I looked at him frowning and could imagine that the dwarves were doing the same thing.

"His name is Beorn", Gandalf's views went through the room, "he is a skin-changer." Gandalf laid his cane on the ground and wandered in the interior of the room. The furniture soared high, I discovered steel pots on a long table, which were twice as large as those in the Shire. I felt instantly more tiny than usual in the ranks of the dwarves, but to my pleasure they seemed to feel less tall than they usually did.

"Sometimes he is a huge black bear, sometimes a good, strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be decent. Despite, he's not particularly enthusiastic with dwarves." Some of the dwarves heavily breathed in air and stared with incomprehensible looks at Gandalf, how he could have been daring to bring them here.

"He's leaving." Dori suddenly grabbed Ori by his collar and dragged him away from the door.

"Go away from that! None of that is of natural cause, none of it. It's obvious. He's under some dark spell." Gandalf went up to him, his expression seemed annoyed.

"Don't be a fool, he's under no spell, only under his own." Gandalf went in the opposite direction of the room and took the gray hat of his head.

"Well then, you need some sleep. Every single one of you. You'll be safe here this night."  Quiter, Gandalf added: "I hope." _I hope that for you too, magician._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope there weren't too many grammar or spelling mistakes and you were able to enjoy this chapter (after MONTHS).


	19. Dwarvish Problems

I wandered silently through the large room, because unlike the dwarves I couldn't sleep yet and wasn't helping to arrange the barn next to the large room either. I preferred to explore the house of our host. _And to think about a certain dwarf_ , I thought and tried to deny this quick thought with evidence. My eyes went over to the cooled chimney at the end of the room; over the two windows next to the huge wooden door; over the colourful flowers on the windowsills, the tables, the chairs, the unpolished silverware, but nothing could tell me more about this bear man. When I had just decided to return to the dwarves and look for a conversation with Kili or Fili, a gnarled hand suddenly laid on my shoulder and I looked up. It was Gandalf. _What could he want from me?_

"Bilbo, I see you want to learn more about our host. Found what you were looking for?" I only shook my head and looked further around. _Actually, I'd rather be alone, dear magician. I didn't leave to have a chat._

"Well, I think you're going to have to be very thorough. Beornings are extremely cautious and cannot be seen too quickly."

"Beornings?"

"Yes, people who turn into the shape of a bear." Gandalf nodded very confidently when I wondered how he always got to these extraordinary friends of his.

"Gandalf, how exactly have you known him at all?" I asked, therefore. Gandalf smiled, but waved resolutely.

"Well, that would be a long story that can be told at another time. Rest, Bilbo, it was a long and nerve racking day." I didn't hide my grin, for I knew he spoke of the events at the river this morning. It was one of the most neat happenings of the day, to see him tempered and with a fiery red face. _But I really should go back and... maybe clarify one thing or another._ Gandalf smiled at me and pulled out a pipe from under his belt.

"How about ... Bilbo?" _Well, this is a way to persuade me, too. And some pipeweed won't hurt me later. Darn, I do sound pretty desperate. Very mean of you, Gandalf, to lure me with this._ I nodded and stared at the pipe, but then said quickly:

"With the condition that the first drag will be mine." Gandalf laughed understanding, holding his wooden rod to the pipe and igniting a flame.

"To your health." I took the pipe and let the herb cloud my senses, then I said with a humming head:

"Mh... Shall we not go outside?" Gandalf sharply took a deep breath of air as if he had completely forgotten that we smoked pipeweed in our host's house without his approval. _Yet, Gandalf warned us before that Beorn was not an easy man to deal with. Or, to eat cherrypie with. Hmm cherries... so red and juicy-sweet. That reminds me of what Ori said when I was collecting berries... Seemed very questionable to me. Should I talk to him about that?_

"You're right, I don't think Beorn would approve that in his four walls." We went out to the yard, at least it looked like one to my experiences, because there were colourful plants, fruit trees and a bench in front of the house. We sat down on the bench; I smoked the pipe and let my gaze wander over the flowers. I looked up to the almost charcoal black sky and discovered dozens of glittering stars. I handed Gandalf the pipe and discovered a pair of eyes through the window behind me. At first I thought of two particular deep blue eyes, but then I noticed a quick hand movement that called for me. It could only be Kili, no one else would've done that. Nervous, I slightly coughed the smoke out of my lungs and felt somehow caught. _Now I actually got busted by Kili smoking. Well, better blame Gandalf. Anyway, why am I still sitting here with him? I had different things to do._

"Well, I thank you sincerely for the tasty pipe", _cough this wonderful sarcasm_ , "but slowly the fatigue outweighs in me. Until tomorrow day, dear Mr. Gandalf", I said as slimy as possible and in response to my dripping cynicism he shook his head indignantly. I grinned teasingly, lifted me elated from the bench and strutted towards the door. _Jeez, what of a load did he let me smoke? I hope I won't_ _regret some of my actions later._

"Kili? Kili, where are you? "I looked around and stared to the window where I had seen Kili's silhouette from the outside, but there was no one there. Are we now playing hide and seek? Snoring.

"Come out, I don't wish to go searching for you", I said a little louder.

I turned around in a circle to make sure that no nerve-wracking dwarf named Kili hid behind me.  _I'm sure he's laughing up in his sleeves because I can't find him. He will regret that._

  
"Kili! If you don't show up now, I tell you, I'll cut your beautiful long hair very very short. I'm serious, I'm already looking for scissors", I said even louder and walked in Beorn's huge kitchen. I pulled out the drawers and slammed them close even louder, while the latter wasn't even intentional and I blamed it on my intoxication. Eventually I found something and took out rusty old scissors.  _I don't want to know what our host needs these for. But for the time being, this should suffice, the fine work can still be done later. Now I just have to find the person concerned. Where could he be?_  Armed with the scissors and a devilish grin on my lips I opened the door next to the kitchen and met, to my misted disappointment, Fili. He was all alone and sitting in a chair with his eyes directed to the bare wall. I noticed without my over-precise senses thanks to the pipeweed that something was wrong. I closed the door behind me and put the scissors on a huge table in the room. The exhilarating feeling in my body faded and I sat down in the chair next to Fili. We sat silently next to each other as I was thinking about what might have happened to Fili that he had departed so far from the others. After some time I lifted my head and looked at him. He noticed my gaze, for he shook his head slightly.

"Bilbo, I just wanted to be alone for a moment", he said quietly, looking straight at the wall. I nodded and stood up from the chair to leave the room and let Fili be.

"No no, please stay." I turned around and looked at him, he glanced directly in my eyes. _What is the matter?_ With a step in his direction I asked cautiously:

"Do you want to tell me what's troubling you?" Fili shrugged his shoulders.

"It's about Kili." As if by a blow of destiny, the door was torn open and Kili burst in. I expected his face to have an angry countenance, but he was terribly worried.

  
"There you are! Don't just run away from me, I don't mean to harm you! And anyway... don't you go out of my way all the time!", said Kili with a loud voice and carefully closed the door. He walked towards his brother, stood provocatively in front of him and put his hands in his hips.

"Now tell me, why are you avoiding me?" He briefly looked around the room and detected me.

"If you can tell Bilbo, you can tell your brother too!", said Kili and I felt a little offended but hopefully it wasn't obvious. _Maybe I should leave them alone,_ I thought, but Fili's look at me pointed me to stay.

"Fili, say something. Is it because... well, you know... I didn't want to hear any details, it just surprised me. I didn't expect you to... um... actually do it...", stammered Kili awkwardly while I was querying raising my eyebrow. _What exactly is this here about?_

  
"That is what you tell a brother, isn't it? ... Well... at least tell me who it was." Fili undecidedly shrugged his shoulders. _Who it was? Wait..._

"Was it Daena? Or Iries?", asked Kili further and Fili shook his head strongly.

"But not- ", Kili began again but was interrupted by Fili, who jumped vigorously and knocked the chair behind him rumbling over.

"No! Why do you even think it was a dwarf?" he shouted. Now I didn't understand anything anymore and Kili probably neither, for he stared confusedly at Fili.

"So... it happened in Rivendell?...", he asked cautiously so he didn't devil his brother even further. Fili softened his hands that were clenched to fists and lifted the chair to sit down. He breathed deeply and shook his head again and again, then he spoke with a lowered gaze:

"It... it was not a maiden." Kili stared at him perplexly, he closed his opened mouth from shock and remained silent in his rigidity. Fili looked away from us to the ground, but I still wasn't really sure what was going on here. _What do you mean, it wasn't a maiden? Why do I seem to be the only one in this room who doesn't get what's going on?_

"Oh... ", murmured Kili with thoughtful mien. Then he lifted his head and looked Fili straight into his eyes, who retorted his gaze in a shrug.

"Does that mean you are...?", he asked and stopped in the middle of his sentence, his words remained hanging in the air.

"No... I--I don't know, it's rather that I'm not just interested in one site", said Fili and plucked his beard. For some reason Kili suddenly grinned widely, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye and put his brother in a headlock. Fili was caught by surprise and couldn't fight back, but Kili laughed loudly.

"Honestly, Fili, I thought you were going to confess to me that you were having something going on with a goat or the like... and then you tell me _that_! Seriously, you made such a fuss! And _you_ are the elder here! I can't believe it..." Kili laughed further and Fili began to chuckle as well. I stared at the two thoughtfully and with raised eyebrows. _With a... goat... having something... going on... going on... Doesn't that mean... Isn't that... So... Oh... That's what they're talking about? And I was with them, sitting here, too... Help._  
When I finally realized what was going on in the whole conversation, I had already unconsciously dilated my eyes and felt my blood running into my cheeks. _So that's what it's all about... I thought it was already off the table. And that worked so much for them? I want to have their problems... Wait, I'd rather not. I am not talking about this at all._ I noticed that they were staring at me, Fili had successfully freed himself from the embrace and they both grinned at me challenging with their white teeth.

  
"Glad we could help Bilbo along", said Kili smirking and Fili added more outrageous:

"Aye, look how uncomfortable he is, he's getting reddish in his face again." Now it was enough for me and I walked mad to the door, pushed it open and snapped the door shut.  _Do they mind?!_  
While the two had likely or hopefully tons to catch up on, where I certainly didn't want to be present, I decided to go to the barn and more or less voluntarily give the dwarves a hand. _Ha! Good one. I never help them with arranging our sleeping places... Unless someone in particular asks me politely to do so. A certain dwarf..._ I thought and shook my head again. I went through the house to the wooden door in the back area, where I suspected the barn. When I heard noises from it, I felt confirmed in my presumption. Before I could grab the doorknob with my hand, I heard loud laughter and giggles behind me. Of course it _was Fili and Kili, who showed up again now. And who were looking way too cheerful._ Fili noticed me and winked mischievous, as if the silent and thoughtful person from earlier had been completely exchanged.

"Look who we have here, isn't that our dearest hobbit?", he chuckled and Kili nodded eagerly approving. _Did they have some of Gandalf's pipeweed?_ , I thought, but then it occurred to me that the two buffoons didn't need any.

"Where are you planning to go, little Bilbo?", quipped Fili even more and I furled my eyebrows with indignation. _It's enough. He dares much._  Kili looked at me closely while he leaned his arm on his brother's shoulder and the other hand was thoughtfully wandering to his chin.

"I think, Fili, he might be looking for something. Or someone, that seems to match it more." Fili grinned and showed a thoughtful facial expression, too.

"Well, you could be right, Kili. I'm just wondering who exactly he wishes to find. Balin certainly not...", said Fili analyzing.

"Going by the age it wouldn't be that absurd", smirked Fili further on and I seethed with rage. After I didn't respond to their accusations, they burst into cheerful laughter and Kili let his arm sink again.

"Oh, Bilbo, you know we're just teasing you a little", said Kili and Fili added:

"We just think you're too cute." Giggling? he came a step towards me tousle my hair with his hand. I shrank back, then slammed against the wooden door and unwittingly pushed it open. Panting, I fell on my back but to my happiness I landed on a mountain full of straw. My eyes went through the room and over the many pairs of eyes that stared at me. Only I couldn't see a particular blue pair. _Thank God, this has been embarrassing enough._ When I had recovered from the shock, which took some time, I struggled to my feet again and came to a shaky stand.

  
"Oops, I'm sorry, Bilbo, I didn't want to do that so hectically." I put him off exasperated and knocked the straw off my trousers. _Not so hectically, of course. Only because you did this patting I'm mad at you. Outrageous dwarves, both of them._ Before I could throw some insults at them of shame and rage, I rather asked what they had been talking about after I was absent. Kili started.

"After you have disappeared so quickly from our little teasing, we still got stuck a bit on the subject. I tell you, this is not intended for the ears of an inexperienced little hobbit." Even though I thought my cheeks had cooled down by then, they throbbed strongly as fresh sunburn on the skin.

"Good that I left before", I said unmoved. Fili's outstretched hand patted my shoulder.

"Don't be like that, it was all totally harmless and we just spoke for a moment. And clarified some things. But now we have been evading our friends long enough. You will search for a place to sleep near us, don't you?", asked Fili hopefully and I feared that he would like to share with me one or another thing he had discussed with Kili in private. _Please, don't. Leave me alone for a minute. I need to look for someone..._

  
"We will definitely save you a place", added Kili after my silence. I nodded.

"I think so, it just depends on what you want to discuss with me, otherwise I'll be gone very quickly."

"Where would that be?", asked Fili mischievous and challengingly grinning. Before I followed the emerging feeling of poking my tongue out at him, I said:

" _Somewhere else._ " And winked in addition. Fili probably didn't expect this reaction and I still noticed his surprised look at me when I turned around and took a few steps away from them. F _inally, hopefully I'll have some rest for a short while. And I hope I finally meet the person I wanted to talk to all the time._

_But what could I say?_


	20. Beorn's Benefit

At a smart pace I went through the barn, hoping the two troublemakers didn't follow me. But as I stumbled through the heaps of straw and repeatedly met other dwarves, I wondered what exactly I wanted here. _Definitely not helping_. I went out again. After I wandered lost in thought through the rooms and then no longer knew the exact reason for it, I started my way back to the barn. I quietly opened the door, which to my misfortune began to creak loudly and I looked with narrowed eyes to a slit in the gloomy room. My ears heard quiet snoring, while I carefully closed the door behind me and crept past the heap of straw. _Where are Fili and Kili?_ , I wondered, but then discovered them further back next to a small window. Both had a small bed between huge hay bales and seemed to sleep as well. Before I sat down to them, I looked precisely around in the room again and narrowed my eyes even further together, but I couldn't see anything. The moon which shone through the window into the room, just gave enough light to recognise the two young dwarves, but I couldn't see the remaining dwarves. _Perhaps I can assign the snoring sounds to a dwarf_ , I pondered but dropped this thought, because this would take too long anyway and my memories didn't remember the dwarven king making any noises while sleeping. _He might just grumble under his breath_ , I thought and couldn't hide my grin, but nobody would have noticed anyway. Unless that nobody was called Fili.  
"Bilbo!" I jumped with fright and stared down, from where I had heard my name.

"Fili, do you plan to kill me?", I whispered back angrily and then sat down to him, as his hand tugged impatiently at my lower leg. _God, how can someone be so binged up? Did he wait for me all the time and lay in ambush?_

"Where have you been?", murmured Fili indistinctly and I needed some time to understand his mumbled words.

"I just looked around a little..." I said quietly. I turned around frantically, for a straw pricked me tedious in the back and tore out some straw with my hand to throw them far away from me.

"So brutal today, Bilbo... did something happen?", asked Fili while he was watching me tearing further straw out of the bale.

"All-...is-... well", I said and was from uncognizable reason so mad at him that he got the full load of straw in his face. _Just be quiet, Fili and stop bothering me._ Fili coughed and wiped the straw from his face.

"Eh! What's the matter with you now, Bilbo?", he murmured aghast and podded the dried straw from his beard. I shrugged with my shoulders and knocked the dirt off my clothes. I noticed Filis in-depth look at me and oppressed an eye roll. _Just leave me, please._ Fili supported himself with his hands on the ground, sat down and then slipped right next to me, possibly hoping I would open myself to him. _Laughable_.

  
"Bilbo, now tell me, what happened?" My eyes continued to rest on the floor and I began to shred the straw with my fingers.

"Nothing", I said quietly, for I didn't want to wake Kili or any of the other dwarves. _That's all I need._

"Your behavior doesn't seem like _nothing_. Is it because of my uncle?", asked Fili immediately and I heard a spunk of amusement in his voice. _Fili, I'll strangle you with my bare hands._  After I annoyed remaint silent, I could see Fili's understanding grin in the corner of my eyes. He leaned against my ear and before I could shove him away from me, he whispered rudely:

"You're certainly sad, because you're not the centre of his attention right now." While he was laughing, I pushed him away and turned to the side to prevent looking at his stupid grin. _How can he dare... That's not true. I'm just so bad-tempered because... well... the whole day I ate nothing but a tiny amount of berries. And I'm tired. I guess you can be a little less communicative at times like those._ Fili pelted me carefully with a handful of straw, but I didn't respond to his action. I closed my eyes and finally tried to fall asleep after this exhausting day.  
As I gradually fell into a dream, I still heard a faint mumbling of Fili next to me.

"But I really wonder where Thorin is all the time."

.

.

.

The next morning I was awakened by something big and hairy on my nose and I wanted to tell Fili, he should better take his hair out of my face, but then I opened my eyes and discovered a huge bumblebee in front of me. I startled and rammed my head against the stone wall behind me. As I sat up and rubbed my head, I looked around in the barn. _I_ _woke up alone, again. Is that going to be such a thing that the dwarves always leave me alone when I wake up and never awake me? I don't always want to be the last to show up and engage all the looks._ I was reasonably well rested, drove my fingers through my curls and went to the kitchen door. Even before I turned the doorknob, I heard voices on the other side. _Do I really want to enter? Well, what options do I have?_ I pushed the door open and closed it quietly behind me. It took only a few steps until I met the dwarves, who, of course, immediately noticed and stared at me. Well, maybe not quite stare, because they just nodded at me for a moment and then turned away from me again. _That's a way to do it._ Before I could release any reaction from me, I was rudely grabbed by the shoulder and dragged by the collar right into the middle of the dwarves. If it had been another person, I would have been less snappy, but Gandalf at the end of the arm wasn't a nice experience.

"Excuse me?", I complained loudly, trying to free myself from his grasp. Gandalf gave up and let go of my collar.

"I'm sorry Bilbo Baggins, but we've waited long enough for you." I laughed bitterly and said dryly:

"Why don't you ever wake me up then? I'm sure it's not my fault if I'm not on my feet like you before dawn. I don't have dozens of years of experience like you do." Gandalf gave me a look that meant my safe death and before I could throw more mockery at his head because of his age, he spoke in a serious voice:

"As we are now complete, I would like to make one thing clear once again: our host, Beorn, is not particularly pleased about us as guests at all", _how splendid, Gandalf_ , "above all he is not very willing to seek the presence of dwarves... " The dwarves shook their heads and muttered something unclear to themselves. I turned to them, discovered Fili and Kili and just wanted to wave at them when Gandalf pulled my sleeve exasperated. I wrenched my arm from him and stared at him with furious gaze. _Stop groping me with your gnarled, deathly cold hands. Scandalous._

  
"Well, I think I should go first and prepare him carefully for thirteen dwarfs to be in his home. To appease him first, Bilbo will go out with me at the beginning." I widened my eyes and wanted to protest, but Gandalf spoke further and allocated each dwarf to another, so that two of them step out of the door.

"Good, and you, Thorin will go last, I am unsure how Beorn will react if he gets to face the rightful king under the mountain first." I turned abruptly and followed Gandalf's gaze, but before I could recognise Thorin, Gandalf turned me around again. After I realized how fast I had just turned around for a certain person, I felt the blush in my face as always. _And to my bad, everyone had seen this. I'm sure Fili will talk to me about this later... Sigh._

"Now, wait here until I give you a sign. Bombur, maybe you better go alone, because you already count as two." Bombur stared at Gandalf and slowly and almost provocatively bit off from a carrot. _Where did he get those?_ Gandalf beckoned me and I looked around again with throbbing cheeks and it occurred to me that the dwarves had taken off all their clothes with fur. _It's noticabl_ e _that they're making every effort to make a good impression on our host._

"Bilbo, come now." I rolled my eyes and followed Gandalf. We stepped out the back door of the kitchen and the sunlight stabbed into my eyes. I blinked strongly and then discovered a huge figure whose entire human-looking body was covered with long, dark fur. His head was almost twice as big as mine, his eyes were yellowish and appeared like a cat's eyes, while his eyebrows almost grew frizzy up to his forehead. I didn't know why, but I was relieved that he wore tattered dark trousers. All of a sudden a sharp axe flashed in the sunlight and crashed deafeningly into a billet of wood that fell cleanly cut apart. Frightened, I stopped and looked to Gandalf, who nervously stroked his hair back and was just looking back at me. _Gandalf and nervous? I should make a good use of that._

"You're nervous", I said and grinned triumphantly. Gandalf stared at Beorn.

"Nervous? I'm not nervous."  _Obviously._ Gandalf approached the skin changer further steps and shouted full of happiness:

"Good morning!" There was a silence and Beorn chopped another billet of wood into two parts. Gandalf assumed he didn't heard us and coughed a little.

"Good morning..!" Our host held the axe to the ground.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Gandalf, Gandalf the Grey." Gandalf bowed suddenly and I wondered if I should do the same but then he stood up again. _With that back? My dear respect, Gandalf_. Beorn spinned round threatening and said booming:

"Never heard of him." Confused, I knitted my eyebrows and turned to Gandalf. _I thought they were friends? Wizard, what tall tales are you serving?_

"I'm a wizard. Perhaps you may have heard of my friend, Radagast the Brown that is."

"What do you want?"

"Well, first of all thank you for your hospitality. You may have noticed that we have occupied your barn for the last night." Beorn seemed uninterested and instead stared with his dark brown eyes at me. He observed me from head to toe and then asked, his eyes on me:

"Who is this little fellow?" _Pardon? Little fellow? Now I feel flattered that he low rates my age, but I quite certainly no longer am a fellow? And not a little one either, I'm one of the biggest halflings of the whole Shire._ I suppressed an angry sniff and hoped he received my grim facial expression correctly.

But Beorn seemed unimpressed.

"Well, this would be Mr. Baggins from the Shire." I tried to soften my eyes and nodded briefly, but that had to do it as a welcome. Beorn firmly clutched the axe and this razor-sharp agriculture equipment in the hands of a giant skin changer was a little worrying.

"He's not a dwarf, is he?"

"Wha- no, no, he's a hobbit. Of good home and 's very peaceful too, if he wants to." Even in front of the almost most dangerous man from all over Middle-Earth Gandalf can't deny my apparent impoliteness.

"A halfling and a wizard. What drove you here?"

"Oh, the thing is, we have come to the wrong place at the wrong time. The orcs followed us when we were in the mountains."

"Why did you get so close to the orcs? Doing so was foolish."

"Well, we didn't really know what we would be facing-" , said Gandalf and waved supportive with his arms, but the dwarves probably must have interpreted that as a sign that instructed them to come out. It clattered loudly and the door opened, Beorn grabbed his axe and I turned around to see a restrained Dwalin and a welcoming smiling Balin. I really strained myself to suppress a laughter and wryly grinned to myself. Dwalin grabbed his belt and said in his serious tone:

"Dwalin. Balin." Only this time he sounded really insecure." I chuckled quietly and hoped no one had heard it.

"Oh, uh, I-I have to admit, some of our companions are in fact... dwarves."

"You call _two_... some?", asked Beorn and the floor started vibrating at his deep voice.

"W-well, uh... Yes, two could... uh, be... some...", Gandalf awkwardly stammeres and again made those desperate hand movements, so that now, Oin and Gloin stepped out of the door. Gandalf shook his head, aghast, but I could only laugh at all of this, if I wouldn't have kept my mouth shut.

"And here, eh, well, are a few more of our cheerful... _troop_."

"At your service!", both dwarves shouted endeavored and bowed deeply.

"You call a _troop_ six?" Gandalf was visibly nervous laughing to himself, even when Beorn asked scuffing:

"What are you, a travelling circus?" Gandalf raised his hands into the air vacious and now the other dwarves, Ori and Dori, followed. Beorn bared his teeth like an animal and was all but hospitable. The two provided him their services as well and bowed, but Beorn shouted to them:

"I don't want your services!"

"Absolutely reasonable", said Gandalf and calmingly raised his hand, but I was sure that this just infuriated the skin changer further. Fili and Kili stepped out of the door, but Kili was pale as the moon last night and I couldn't help but when seeing Fili, press my hand over my grinning mouth before I could burst into ringing laughter. Fili was uncertain as he stepped outside, but as he could evaluate the situation after a moment, he had to bite his lip to suppress a grin. Beorn grumbled loudly from his gut but didn't comment.

"Oh! Fili, Kili... almost forgot." Suddenly four dwarves at once shot out of the barn and fell almost on top of one another. I laughed quietly and Fili seemed to soon burst into a loud laughter either. Gandalf just sighed.

"Hem... oh... Nori, Bofur, Bifur... Bombur..." He looked testing to Beorn, who fortunately had only put on a serious look.

"Was that all?", he asked sharply. Certainly the most important person of our entire company was still missing and I already turned around before Gandalf could fool about with his hands again.

"Are there anymore...?", whispered Gandalf and of course he knew the answer.

I stared at the door and he stepped outside, but different as his pals he seemed to be little impressed by the encounter. I immediately noticed his pale face, but he definitely didn't have it because of fear or nervousness. He must still be weakened by the consequences of his fight, if not even worse than on the previous day. I stared in his bright eyes and had goosebumps when our eyes met.

  
_Where has he been all night?_


	21. Milk but no Animals

Beorn grunted and placed the axe next to the tree stump with the billet of wood, then he walked through the door from which the dwarves had come before and left it wide open. I only forced my gaze from Thorin when Gandalf barged against me and I almost fell fowards. I stared at him angrily as he followed Beorn and ordered us with a wave to go back into the wooden hut. Thorin turned around instantaneously and followed the two without any further. I followed him with my eyes a little disappointed, then stroked my jacket and approached the house again. When I entered, I heard Beorn putting the kettle on, he seemed to have accepted us as his temporary guests for now. It felt special to have a Beorning on the side. Especially since the orcs even seemed to fear the skin-changer. Gandalf commised us to sit at the long table, he himself took place next to the chair of Beorn. Before I could sit in the back of the room on a chair and thus sat as far as possible from all the people, Gandalf  performed a hand movement which inevitably called me to him. He pointed to the chair opposite him, the chair to the right of Beorn.

 _To appease him that he doesn't have to sit next to a dwarf? If you insist, Gandalf._ I hesitated briefly, because Beorns huge apparition sitting next to me was a bit of a worry, and if he was still to be angry about anything, he would most likely take his anger out on me first. Nevertheless I walked across the room and tried to get on the chair, but it was pretty high-built. _Ugh how embarrassing. The halfling can't get onto his chair, probably such a matter to laugh about._  Of course it was, especially when a dwarf named Fili just sat next to you.

"Hhehe... Bilbo, do you need a hand?", he said scandalously and laughed aloud. The shame gnaws me from within, but I wasn't red on my cheeks to my surprise. _Not yet._

"No", I said while giving him the evil eye and Fili raised his hands in defense.

"Okay, okay. I'll leave it all to you." He sat down effortlessly on his hair which seemed to be much lower than mine anyway. After a short, undignifying bounce, I finally sat at the table like all the other dwarves and Gandalf. I looked straight forward and to my fright next to Gandalf sat, of course, none other than Thorin who, to my happiness, had turned his gaze to his right. _To my regret. What's the matter with him? Did I do something wrong_?, I wondered, while my eyes drove over his appearance. He didn't wear his coat, which was known to be fitted with white fur, but a kind of thin jacket of dark cloth around his muscular shoulders. His striking face looked paler than the last days and he seemed to be engrossed in thought all morning. The deep cuts on his cheeks and his beautiful nose were more apparent, leaving me with an uneasy feeling in my stomach. Suddenly I was pushed into the pit of my stomach from beside me and I spun around alarmed.

"You're staring again", whispered Fili winking at me and I rolled my eyes while I was turning from him. _Slowly the fine dwarf is really getting on my wick's. Thinks he's got influence in where I'm looking. And I just had some time to look at him again... I'm just wondering what he's missing... and of course how to cheer him up._  I tried to remove the latter from my thoughts with a shake of my head. Beorn took the kettle from the hearth, rummaged fifteen giant cups from a cupboard and filled them with the milk. He walked around the table and put a cup in front of every dwarf while huffing, beside Gandalf and me he remained silent. Then he sat down on his chair and nodded briefly into the round to allow us to drink. I stared into my cup. The white liquid shimmered, but I couldn't remember seeing any milk producing being. At all, the milk looked very different from the one I knew from the Shire. _Is it proven that this isn't anything else? I'd better not drink it and rather wait for the dwarves to react to the broth_. Kili had already put the cup to his lips, but Fili beside me stared just like me in his cup. He must have had the same doubts as me. Unlike me, the corners of his mouth went up slowly. After a short blink I turned to him:

"Tell me... don't you think it's questionable that we get a milky substance here and there's not a single animal in the whole house?" Before Fili could react Kili swallowed up loudly and snorted in his cup. The milk splashed right in his face and dribbled down his beard. Fili began to grin and said:

"That's exactly what Dérek looked life after our _merging_." Kili choked on his air again, quickly put down the cup and shoved his brother away with such a force that he almost slammed against me.

"By Durin's beard, Fili you're so disgusting!", he said, wiping the white liquid out of his eye with his sleeve. I stared at the two silently, for I did not know what was going on there.

"Now I can never look Dérek in the eyes again." Fili pushed his brother playful and said:

"Oh, whatever, you can still bear me, too. Now you finally know who I was involved with." He suddenly bent down to his brother and lowered his voice.

"Literally." Kili pushed him away with a disgusted mien, while Fili laughed loudly and soundingly. I stared with tangled thoughts in the cup clutched by my fingers, let the liquid spill around and then widened my eyes. _Oh god. Fili did not- Oh. My. God. That's disgusting_. Reflex-like, I pushed the cup away from me and was really lucky that it didn't tip over. I quickly looked to my right. Beorn seemed to be involved in a conversation with Gandalf and didn't notice my action while the rest of the dwarves were talking loudly, as usual.

"Well then Bilbo, aren't you thirsty?", sneered Fili, looking at me provocatively. But instead of feeling attacked, I was struck by the thought of an unexpected setback. I said nothing to Filis remark, instead grabbed the cup again and never broke eye contact with Fili while I held the cup to my lips and drank the contents in one gulp. I smashed the emptied cup on the table. The _milk_ I hoped dripped down my lip and over my chin. With a slow and provocative hand gesture I wiped it away. Fili stared at me with his mouth open and at the end of my derision I even winked at him. Fili suddenly became quite pale in his face and quickly lowered his gaze as he noticed it. I looked into the round and was stared at from every side, even from Gandalf and Beorn who, however, had more of a questioning look on his face. The dwarves broke out in laughter, while all their gazes were now directed at Fili. Fili seemed rather angry and insulted than ashamed, but unfortunately he had to withstand that. _The many times I have been pestered by him... dwarf, don't challenge the hobbit Bilbo Baggins._ I noticed another, far more in-depth look at me which caused a shiver running over my back. My head turned in the direction. Thorin. For a completely logical reason I was glad to finally be perceived by him again but with the sinister expression of his face, with what he looked at me, the blood froze in my veins. Except for the blood in my cheeks, for they were, of course, without exception dark red like a cherry. Thorin didn't seem to have touched his cup and had probably listened to Gandalf and Beorn during her conversation. 

 _Of course he is angry, I interrupted the most important conversation of our journey with my embarrassing I-must-prove-myself attitude. Now the king of the dwarves is even more disappointed in me than he already was. But... I just want to be close to him again... It was so nice... wait. I beg your pardon? Bilbo, keep your fantasies out of it._  
I stared at the table and counted the notches and scratches. _Please change the topic of the conversation. Please_. And indeed Gandalf unmistakable cleared his throat and looked to Beorn. He got up and filled the cups one more time while he was walking around.

"So, you're the one they call Oakenshield. Tell me..." he poured the cup of Thorin up to the edge.

"Why is Azog the Defiler on your track?" Thorin stared at the cup, then he coldly lifted his gaze.

"You know about Azog? How?" His deep voice echoed long in my ears. _It's been a long time_. Beorn looked right in his eyes as he spoke.

"My people were the first to live in the mountains... before the orcs came from the north. The Defiler killed most of my family." I didn't want to imagine what it would be like if Hobbiton was overrun by orcs. Something metallic on Beorn's arm caught my eye. It was a handcuff tightly strapped around his wrist. A rusted steel chain hung down from it which repeatedly entangled around Beorn's legs. I swallowed.

"But some... he enslaved. Not for work, you must understand. For sports. Imprisoning skin-changers and torturing them seemed to amuse him."

"There are others like you?", I blurted out surprised and drew Beorn's look at me, as well as those of the dwarves and Gandalf. Beorn looked at me for a long time until he continued to speak.

"At that time there were many of us." Another question came to my mind.

"And now?" I asked with lowered voice and tried to hide the attention given to me around me.

"Now there is only one." I stared at him for I didn't expect this reply and lowered my head with a grueling feeling in my stomach. Beorn looked around and said:

"You must reach the mountain before the last days of Autumn."

"Before Durin's Day ends, yes", said Gandalf approvingly.

"You're out of time."

"This is the reason why we have to cross mirkwood", said Gandalf quietly and I looked up. Thorin didn't seem enthusiastic about this suggestion at all and looked with dark seething eyes at Gandalf. _Mmmh_... His lips were still sealed and it was probably enough for him to imagine him squeezing Gandalf's air out of his throat. Instead of sitting on the chair, Beorn settled on an armchair next to his cooking area.

"A darkness lies on this forest. Cruel things creep beneath the trees. There was... an alliance. Between the orcs of Moria and the necromancer of Dol Guldur. I wouldn't risk it... except in utmost need."

"We will follow the path of the elves, this path is still safe", said Gandalf highly convinced but a little hint of doubt could be heard. I saw Thorin rising from his chair with a serious mien and turning his back on us.

"Are you sure?", asked Beorn, turning his head to him.

"The wood-elves of mirkwood are not like their kin. They are less wise but way more dangerous." Beorn paused a brief moment.

"But it is not important." Thorin turned and elegantly flew his wavy streaks while giving his turn something gloomy. 

His deep blue eyes looked to me and I got comforting goose bumps, then he looked to Beorn.

"What do you mean?" His voice sounded unappreciated and iron but the doubt in his eyes the doubt was clear. _Just as Gandalf... Will this be the end of our journey?_ Beorn leaned his head to the side while he was seemeding him from head to toe.

"These lands are swarming with orcs. Their numbers are growing.... and you're on foot. You will never reach the forest alive." This time an icy shiver ran over my back and I clawed my fingers on the chair. I silently admitted that his words caused the fear to rise in me. Fili seemed to be looking at me but I didn't care, for my eyes rushed to look at Thorin again. He had bitten his teeth and looked at Beorn with so much anger and doubts that my breath was faltering. _If even the king under the mountain was doubting... how can it turn for us to the good?_  
Beorn stood up from his armchair, walked past the dwarves and stared into the alternating empty and full cups.

"I don't like dwarves", he said suddenly and I heard some of the dwarves snort. Thorin looked at him hatefully. I was sure he was thinking about why we were still wasting our time here if the skin-changer didn't want to help us anyway.

"They are greedy... and blind."  
I stared obliquely to my side where Beorn stood and saw that right at the moment Bofur pushed a little white mouse off his hand.

"Blind to the lives of those that seem less worth to them than theirs." He slowly stretched out his big hand and lifted the mouse gently. With the other hand he gently stroked its head. He was now right in front of Thorin.

"But orcs I hate more." He raised his gaze upon Thorin who looked at him with raised eyebrows and folded arms. Beorn puckered his lips to a quiet smile.

"What do you need?"

  
_A warm bed_ , I thought and rubbed my head at where I bumped into the wall in the morning. From then I didn't listen to the voices of Gandalf and Beorn, I was far too much immersed in my own thoughts of my beautiful Bag End. _I won't see that for a long time. Not that bad, I prefer the company here much more. Funnily enough._

"Bilbo, Kili, wanna go?", asked Fili next to me and stood up from his chair as he grabbed his brother and me by the sleeves and took us with him. _Does he want to tell us more about his stories? No thanks, not on my watch._ I tried to free myself from his grip but he immediately noticed it. Kili, however, made it with a strong, annoyed yank and Fili looked at him slightly confused. Kili shrugged his shoulders.

"I'll just... go ahead. Looking for the things Beorn mentioned." Fili nodded with narrowed eyes and Kili walked out of the kitchen. Fili didn't seem to be thinking about helping the dwarves to find the proviants and instead moved on to the door. But several more steps before he got there, Thorin with his arms folded suddenly stepped in before and blocked the way to the exit. His gaze was gloomy and it seemed as if he wanted to kick Fili out of the next window by himself. He walked a big step towards his nephew and growled with impending voice:

 

"Don't you have nothing better to do, such as helping your brothers to embark on our journey? Will you disappear like the last few times again and won't show your face to your own kind? Go and get the saddles." Fili had released my sleeve and lowered his head, then he nodded mutely, turned around and walked with shuffling steps away from us. I knew that I was now being punished too and hoped that I wouldn't be near horses or horse hair. _But of course I wished to stay in a very specific area._..  
Thorin's eyes wandered to me, he loosened his arms from the entanglement and looked down at me from above. The warming sensation in my stomach increased strongly. With a head nodding towards the door, he ordered me to follow him outside. I couldn't resist, for I enjoyed being back near him again way too much.

_And it's still not off the table that he had carried me down a whole hill to the campfire._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God what a chapter! Sorry for taking so long. My English worsened over the past weeks, for the story works in German way better!  
> Anyway I hope it doesn't sound to y'all as crappy as it sounded to me and you at least kind of enjoyed this chapter...  
> I hope the next one won't take months to finally be done!


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